A United Airlines plane en route to JFK Airport in New York from London's Heathrow Airport has been forced to make an unscheduled stop at Shannon after a bomb threat.
The Boeing 777 plane, which was carrying 197 passengers, made its emergency landing shortly after 4.30 p.m. All the passengers have reportedly disembarked and an examination of the aircraft is underway.
It is believed staff became suspicious of a note found written on a paper napkin which lead them to believe a bomb may be on board.
The United Airlines flight 905 was parked near the end of the airfield while a full security check takes place.
It will remain there for a period of 24 hours and the situation will be monitered by Army bomb disposal experts every six hours.
The plane must remain unsearched until the original flight time has elapsed, a Garda spokeswoman said.
