No explosives found after threatening message grounds flight

Airport police said they found no trace of explosives on a plane that was forced to change its route Thursday night after the airline that owns it received a threatening message.

Shenzhen Airlines said the company received an anonymous threatening phone call after flight ZH9706 took off from Xiangyang in central China's Hubei Province for Shenzhen in south China's Guangdong Province.

The flight landed at Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in central China's city of Wuhan at 11:24 p.m. out of concerns for passenger safety, airport operators confirmed.

Police conducted a thorough inspection but found no dangerous items on the aircraft or in the passengers' belongings.

All the 71 passengers delayed by the incident have boarded a new flight, which departed for Shenzhen at 10:46 a.m. Friday, the airport said.

The incident is the second to occur this week, with an Air China flight from Beijing to New York being forced to return to Beijing over a threatening message Wednesday evening.

However, no abnormalities were detected on the flight, which left for New York for the second time hours later.