A man who was onboard a passenger plane at Manchester Airport in northwest England has been arrested on suspicion of making a hoax bomb threat, local police said Tuesday.

A passenger plane was escorted by Britain's Royal Air Force (RAF) military jets to Manchester Airport on Tuesday afternoon after reports of a possible device on board.

Before the man was arrested, passengers were allowed off the plane, with only one passenger still left with the officers.

Police and airport staff were dealing with situation as an emergency, the Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said Tuesday afternoon on its twitter feed.

After the plane landed in the airport, it was moved to allow specialist officers who are dealing with the incident to board.

"A passenger has been taken off the plane by officers at Manchester Airport. We will work to get others off as swiftly and safely as possible," the GMP tweeted.

Police also said it's now "business as usual" at Manchester Airport due to swift partnership response, adding that police are dealing with the matter as an "isolated incident."

GMP's Chief Superintendent John O'Hare said: "Safety of those on board as well as those in and around airport is our paramount concern."

The passenger plane was believed to be an Airbus A330 of Qatar Airways, and all flights in and out of the airport had been suspended for about 25 minutes before resumption, according to a BBC report.