Man charged over bomb hoax

An Australian man has been charged in connection with a bomb hoax at London's Gatwick Airport, Sussex police said. Matthew Carney, 23, from Melbourne was arrested on Sunday after a note suggesting there was an explosive device on board an Emirates flight from Dubai to London. The hoax note was found about 10 minutes before the flight, carrying 184 passengers, touched down safely at the airport south of the British capital, the airline said.

It prompted explosives experts to search the plane and luggage while officials interviewed passengers. Mr Carney was charged with allegedly communicating information believed to be false with the intention of inducing a false belief that an object liable to explode or ignite was present in the cargo of a plane, police said. He made no plea in court in nearby Crawley, and was remanded in custody to appear again on Thursday, said Sussex police.

A spokesperson for Gatwick airport declined to comment. *AFP