Telephone threats ground five planes.[File photo]

Police in south China's Guangdong province said on Thursday they have arrested a man suspected of making false bomb threats via phone calls to several Chinese airlines, causing flight disturbances.

The suspect is a 26-year-old unemployed man surnamed Wang from North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. He was captured in a rented room in Changping township of Dongguan city in the early hours of Thursday, according to the official microblog of the Shenzhen municipal Internet information office.

The suspect admitted that he made six consecutive phone calls to the airlines on Wednesday, claiming there were bombs on the planes, the office said on its microblog, citing the Shenzhen public security bureau.

The bomb threats were made against three Chinese airlines on Wednesday morning. Five flights operated by China Eastern Airlines, Juneyao Airlines and Shenzhen Airlines were affected.

Juneyao Airlines received a threatening call and arranged for flight HO1111 departing from Shanghai to return to the city so that the plane could be checked. Police found that there was no danger posed to the aircraft, the airline said.

After all passengers and luggage passed a safety screening, the flight took off in another plane, the company said.

China Eastern Airlines flight MU2325 from Lanzhou to Xi'an was also safely cleared after receiving a similar threat.

Shenzhen Airlines received multiple threats, with flight ZH9866 departing from Nanjing, returning to the city after take-off. Flight ZH9243 departing from Xi'an was forced to prematurely land in the city of Guilin, while flight ZH9889 departing from Beijing was delayed. So far, all affected aircraft have taken off or are planning to take off after further security checks found no abnormalities.

At least 10 cases of bomb threats on flights were reported in China last year, creating huge losses for airlines and airports.

Passengers complained online that bomb scares have seriously threatened their safety and interrupted their travel plans.

"We had to fly back half an hour after taking off, and were later surrounded by police and explosion-proof vehicles," Sina Weibo user "Zhu Xu Stephen" wrote of his experience on Juneyao Airlines flight HO1111.

According to China's criminal law and civil aviation law, those who intentionally disturb flight operations by fabricating and spreading terror information may receive punishments ranging from detention to a jail term of less than five years, or more than five years for those whose actions led to severe consequences.

Experts have urged tougher punishments to curb "copycat crimes" among others.

Liu Chunquan, a lawyer with a Shanghai legal firm, advised authorities to mete out fines to the perpetrators.

Airlines, airports and passengers are also advised to claim compensation from the lawbreakers, said Liu.

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