Mobile phone scare on BA flight

LONDON, England (CNN) -- A British Airways flight from London to New York turned back on Sunday when a mobile phone was found on board.

Flight BA179 returned to the airport after the mobile phone was heard ringing at the back of the plane. None of the 217 passengers on board the plane appeared to own the phone.

Mobile phones, along with all items of hand luggage except the bare essentials, were banned from flights Thursday after a plot to bomb transatlantic flights was foiled.

These restrictions are now being eased with full effect from Tuesday. (Full story)

BA's security team at Heathrow were consulted about the mobile phone incident and decided it was safe for the plane to continue its journey. However, the captain turned back as a precautionary measure.

A businessman who was among the passengers told BBC News 24: "When the plane took off a mobile phone started ringing.

"One-and-a-half-hours later the captain made the decision, having spoken to his company, that we needed to come back."

A BA spokeswoman said the flight, BA 179, took after again at 1.45 a.m. and was due to arrive at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport at 4.15 a.m. (0815 GMT.)

In a statement BA said: "A mobile phone was located on board the aircraft which none of the passengers appeared to own.

"The captain assessed the situation with BA's security team at Heathrow and it was decided that it was safe to continue.

"However the captain decided to return to Heathrow as a precaution. The captain explained his decision to the 217 passengers on board the aircraft.

"We apologize to customers for the inconvenience but their safety is our number one priority and we will always err on the side of caution."

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