Intercepted

A Northwest Airlines plane was intercepted and diverted from its scheduled flight from Amsterdam to Mumbai. A number of people were questioned and 12 people were taken into custody.

A number of the passengers were questioned once the plane landed safely at Schiphol.

"A certain number of passengers are being heard as witnesses to get a clearer picture of what happened," police spokesman Rik Hirs said.

The Dutch news agency ANP quoted a police spokesman as saying 12 people had been arrested, but declined to give further details because of the ongoing investigation.

Security levels at airports across the world were raised two weeks ago after British police said they had foiled a plot to blow up a number of trans-Atlantic flights.

The Dutch had sent two F-16s to rendezvous with the plane after the pilot chose to return to Amsterdam while flying over Germany.

It remains to be seen whether the plane or anyone else on the ground was in danger, but given the recent terror plot busts involving airliners, it is good to know that the pilot didn't want to take any chances.

UPDATE:
Recent news reports indicate that the 12 people acted in a suspicious manner during the flight including using cellphones and passing them among each other. This could still be nothing, but the authorities aren't taking any chances. Others noting the curious situation and the arrest of the 12 individuals are Jeff Goldstein (who is hoping to track down additional sourcing for the story), Confederate Yankee, Cold Fury, and Liberty and Justice.

Allah notes that this is the fourth time in the past week that there have been similar incidents involving flights. It could be another false alarm, but this is the first incident involving arrests. Air marshalls on board the flight who were suspicious of the activities, not simply other passengers.