An Aer Lingus flight from Dublin to Perpignan airport in the south of France was diverted this afternoon because of a bomb scare.
The scheduled flight was diverted to Toulouse after the bomb alert at Perpignan airport, which occured at 2.30pm local time (1.30pm).
Some 500 passengers were immediately evacuated from the terminal building and a specialist bomb disposal squad arrived on site.
They exploded a suspect device in a small suitcase which was left at the bottom of the control tower in the vicinity of nearby gas cylinders. The airport was reopened at 4.05pm.
The alert caused the diversion of Aer Lingus flight EI510 which left Dublin at 12.20pm today.
The flight was approximately one hour out from Perpignan when it received information of the closure. The plane was carrying 148 passengers, including four infants.
The airport has now been reopened. Flight EI510 will now continue its journey from Toulouse to Perpignan.
As a result, the return flight EI 511 from Perpignan to Dublin will arrive approximately two hours late into Dublin.