“The computer-controlled device of the Boeing 777 gave a false alarm about a fire that led the flight to be diverted to Athens airport, where it landed safely,” Saleh Mohammed Al-Ghamdi, Saudi ambassador to Greece, told Arab News by phone Thursday.

The alarm prompted an emergency evacuation procedure after the plane landed. None of the 239 passengers and crew members were injured during the evacuation.

After the evacuation, a check of the plane revealed that there had been no fire. Fire extinguishing material was released in the cargo hold during the incident and the plane had to be replenished before it could continue. It was scheduled to depart Thursday evening.

The plane landed at 10:49 a.m. Athens time, said Dimitris Stavropoulos, a spokesman of the Hellenic Civil Aviation Authority. Two F-16 fighter jets escorted the plane to Athens airport.

On April 6, a Saudi Arabian Airlines flight from London Heathrow carrying over 200 passengers was diverted for an emergency landing in Rome after a device on the Boeing 777 falsely detected overheating in an engine, which was shut down in flight as a safety precaution.

That emergency landing came a day after Jeddah-NYC Saudia flight carrying 225 passengers landed in Cairo after one of the Boeing 777’s engines was shut down due to a stuck valve. The flight was resumed seven hours later and arrived safely at JFK with no further incidents.