Flight in Israel grounded after images of plane crash were sent by airdrop to phones of terrified passengers

An airline operator had to abandon take-off after horrified passengers were sent images of a plane crashing.

Israeli authorities say passengers preparing to fly from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport on Tuesday, May 10 recieved cruel photos of crashed planes which caused some passengers to pass out with fright.

The AnadoluJet service – a Turkish airline – was bound for Istanbul as at the time.

Nine passengers were detained and are suspected of bombarding others on the flight with unsettling pictures as Israel authorities believe the AirDrop function on Apple phones was used to send the images.

Under Israeli law, each of the nine face up to three years in prison for disseminating false information.

Ofer Lefler, spokesman for the Israel Airports Authority, said: ‘I am sure the police and the security authorities will find out why they (the suspects) did it.’

He commended the pilot for making the ‘right call’ to abandon the flight and return to gate due to alarm among passengers.

The plane eventually took off several hours late after additional security checks had been carried out on the aircraft, luggage and passengers.