Tangerang. A Lion Air passenger was detained at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on Saturday evening after claiming he had a bomb on board a Jakarta-North Sumatra flight, authorities said.

The incident forced flight JT 308, bound for Kualanamu Airport in Medan, to be delayed for several hours and reassigned to a different aircraft.

The male passenger, identified only by the initial H, 41, is currently undergoing intensive questioning by the airport police in Tangerang, Banten.

Airport Police Chief Commissioner Ronald Sipayung said the incident occurred around 6:35 p.m. as the plane was taxiing toward the runway from Terminal 1A. A cabin crew member received a report that a passenger had claimed to be carrying a bomb, which was immediately relayed to the cockpit.

In response, the pilot returned the aircraft to the apron and canceled the flight.

“The suspect was immediately detained and taken to the airport’s interrogation room,” Ronald said. “All passengers were evacuated and asked to wait in the Terminal 1A waiting area.”

As a result of the disruption, flight JT 308 was delayed for several hours. The original aircraft -- a Boeing 737-900 MAX (PK-LRG) -- was replaced with a Boeing 737-900ER (PK-LSW). The remaining 181 passengers were finally flown out at 9:55 p.m.

Ronald stressed that making a bomb threat, even as a joke, is a criminal offense under Indonesia’s Aviation Law No. 1 of 2009.

“The suspect could face up to one year in prison. If proven to have disrupted flight operations, the sentence could increase to a maximum of eight years,” he warned.