Virgin Australia flight to Los Angeles makes emergency landing after bomb threat

SYDNEY – A Virgin Australia flight from Sydney to Los Angeles was diverted after the airline received a bomb threat that turned out to be a hoax, the airline said on Wednesday.

The plane was forced to land in the eastern city of Brisbane on Wednesday after the threat was called in.

Australian Federal Police searched the plane and determined there was no danger, the airline said in a statement. A spokeswoman declined to release further details of the threat.

The plane will resume its flight to Los Angeles on Wednesday night.

Dozens of schools around Australia have been receiving threats warning of bombings or shootings over the past month in what police believe is a hoax largely being orchestrated by a person or group overseas. Schools across the world — including the U.S., Europe and Japan — have received similar threats in recent months.