Canada probes rash of airline bomb hoaxes

Canadian authorities are investigating a series of false bomb threats against domestic flights over the past week, the nation's number two airline said on Thursday.

"This week's false threats are all criminal investigations, and we will support investigators as they seek out those responsible," said WestJet, the target of most of the incidents, on its Twitter account.

In the latest hoax bomb threat, a WestJet airliner flying from Vancouver to Toronto was diverted late Wednesday to Calgary where it was searched by police.

WestJet said no explosive devices were found despite an anonymous warning.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police told news organizations that it was investigating the false alarms with local police, and that no arrests have been made so far.

On Tuesday, a WestJet flight from Toronto to Saskatoon was evacuated on arrival, but a search turned up no bombs.

On Monday, a WestJet flight from Edmonton to Toronto was diverted to Winnipeg after another false alarm.

That followed an emergency landing on Saturday of a flight from Edmonton to Halifax, also because of a bomb threat.

A week ago Thursday, an Air Canada airliner was grounded for three hours in St. John's, Newfoundland after a note was found saying a bomb had been placed on board.