A man has been arrested after he wrongly boarded an easyJet flight without the correct documents at Manchester Airport.

Greater Manchester Police said officers responded to reports a man was on the aircraft, due to depart for Milan, at about 7pm on Friday.

The individual, in his 20s, was arrested on suspicion of hiding oneself for the purpose of being carried in an aircraft without consent and intentionally or recklessly causing public nuisance after he returned to the terminal, the force said.

Nothing suspicious was found aboard the aircraft and there is no suggestion the incident was terror-related.

The man remains in police custody for questioning while inquiries continue.

In a statement, easyJet said its EZY2127 flight was subject to additional security checks per standard procedure “due to a passenger incorrectly boarding the flight”.

The airline added: “Safety and security is our highest priority and so we will now work with our ground partner at Manchester Airport to understand how he was able to board the flight.”

Manchester Airport told the PA news agency the passenger was “properly screened” by its security “so passenger safety was never an issue”, and that it was working with the police and airline to look into what happened.