Australian plane bomb plot inadvertently thwarted at check-in desk

Australian police say they have 'very substantial evidence' and are expected to charge three suspects they have in custody

Sydney Airport. Passengers have been advised to arrive early and expect delays after the bomb plot was uncovered (Simon Sees)

A terrorist plot to blow up a passenger plane by putting a bomb in luggage in the hold was narrowly thwarted at Sydney airport after the suitcase was found to be too heavy to be checked in.

The contents of the bag were discovered in counter terrorism raids in Sydney on the evening of Saturday 29 July.

Four men were arrested and detained on suspicion of plotting to smuggle an improvised explosive device onto an Etihad flight departing Sydney for Abu Dhabi, according to The Sydney Morning Herald. One was later released without charge.

It is understood that the device, which was a meat mincer designed to explode or disperse deadly gas, according to police, reached the airport’s international terminal.

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said there was no longer any threat to the country’s aviation industry and that the intelligence services were restoring the aviation terror threat to what it was before the arrest.

“The threat to aviation from the plot that was uncovered to bring down a plane has been disrupted and contained,” Turnbull told reporters in Perth.

The Sydney Morning Herald said “multiple sources” confirmed the attempt to check the luggage in, but added that had it made it past the airline check-in, it could subsequently still have been detected in a security screening.

Khaled Merhi, Khaled Khayat and Mahmoud Khayat remain in custody, and Mr Turnbull confirmed on Thursday that charges would be made against the men after police discovered “very substantial evidence”.

“The Federal Police Commissioner, Andrew Colvin, has advised me that the investigation efforts are proceeding very successfully in terms of the gathering of evidence, and that I should expect, and Australians should expect, charges to be laid in due course,” Mr Turnbull said.

The fourth man, Abdul Merhi, the brother of suspect Khaled Merhi, was released without charge on Tuesday.

Security was increased at all major Australian international and domestic terminals following the arrests, leading to delays and significant queues.

On Thursday, Mr Turnbull said enhanced security measures will continue, but will be modified to reduce delays. He did not offer any details on what changes will be made.

New South Wales Police Commissioner Mick Fuller praise police for stopping what could have been a “horrible crime”. He said: “Terrorism is very different to other crimes. You cannot wait until you have the perfect brief, you cannot wait until you have all the pieces of the puzzle because you cannot afford to let the criminal act happen.”

British and US spies reportedly shared information about the alleged bomb plot with Australian intelligence service, which led to the counter-terrorism raids on the weekend.

Air passengers in Australia have been advised to arrive at airports an hour earlier than they normally would.