A BOMB threat at Launceston Airport was immediately found to be a hoax by Virgin Australia yesterday.
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About 1.45pm an anonymous male called a business within the airport and indicated that there was a bomb on a plane, using a flight number as identification.
A Virgin Australia spokeswoman said the threat was immediately determined to be fake, with the flight departing after a search of the relevant planes.
The incident caused a delay of 90 minutes to one aircraft and 75 minutes to another.
Police attended the scene and said the airport was not evacuated at any point.
Tasmania Police said Virgin Australia was the appropriate authority to determine whether such a threat was legitimate and directed inquiries about the matter to the company.
The Virgin Australia spokeswoman said the company would not make a statement on the matter.
Police Association of Tasmania president Pat Allen said bomb hoaxes were resource-intensive exercises.
He said he did not believe hoaxes were more likely to happen at Launceston Airport due to the removal of Australian Federal Police from the site.
Constable Allen said making bomb threats was a federal offence taken seriously by police and courts.
"I hope they catch the idiot and this idiot finds out exactly how stupid it is to make threats in relation to an aircraft," he said.