MANILA (Updated)) -- A Saudi Arabian Airlines plane from Jeddah made a distress call Tuesday shortly before landing at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and was placed in isolation after it touched down.
The flight crew, however, later said they made a mistake in sending the emergency message.
The plane, which carried around 300 passengers, landed at the airport around 3 p.m. Tuesday, September 20.
Manila airport manager Eddie Monreal said authorities deployed security forces around the aircraft as a precaution. Passengers were later allowed to disembark around 5 p.m.
He said the captain told the control tower that a button indicating a hijacking was in progress had been pushed accidently.
Television stations showed Flight SV-872 parked near a ramp at NAIA runway 6 with security personnel standing nearby while passengers descended from a staircase. (AP/Sunnex)