Women in court after bomb threats

Singapore Airlines ordered a midflight search on commercial plane out of Auckland after two young Christchurch women made bomb threats to ground staff, a court was told today.

Georgina Langley, 19, pleaded guilty to two charges of threatening to harm people or property after calling the airline twice last November.

Stephanie Kate Austin, 18, pleaded guilty to the same charges at an earlier court sitting.

Both have been remanded for sentencing on May 24.

The court was told that in the first 52 minute call to a staff member on November 5, they attempted to book eight business class tickets from Auckland to Hong Kong.

Using a fake accent they then began to threaten the airline, saying they were suicide bombers who were going to blow up the plane and wanted to kill everybody.

In a second 106 minute long phone call on November 24 the pair attempted to make the same bookings.

They said that a bomb had been planted in the cockpit of the plane, and it would go off in 10 minutes.

Singapore Airlines alerted the commander of an airborne flight out of Auckland and staff conducted a discreet search but nothing was found.

Another plane on the ground was searched by an explosives detection dog, and increased police presence was used as passengers were boarding the flight.

- NZPA