EgyptAir passenger plane hijacked, forced to Cyprus

An EgyptAir passenger plane en route from Alexandria to Cairo was hijacked on Tuesday and has landed in Cyprus, sources in civil aviation ministry and police said.

It was reported that the airliner landed in Larnaca airport in Cyprus.  Flight MS181 was carrying 55 passengers, seven crew, according to an Egyptian airport official.

An Al Arabiya News Channel corespondent said the EgyptAir pilot contacted the Cairo control tower to report the hijacking. The plane had been due to land in Cairo at 7.15am.

The hijackers contacted the control tower at 8:30 am (0530 GMT) and the plane was given permission to land at 8:50 am, the police said.

A passenger with a suicide belt threatened the pilot of a hijacked EgyptAir plane that was diverted to Cyprus on Tuesday, the Civil Aviation Ministry said.

In a statement, the ministry said pilot Omar al-Gammal had informed authorities that he was threatened by a passenger who possessed a suicide belt and forced him to land in Larnaca.