Two men were arrested on Friday after allegedly threatening crew on board a Kulula.com airliner, resulting in its return to Cape Town International Airport.

Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA) spokeswoman Deidre Hendricks said: "The South African Police Services boarded the aircraft and arrested two male passengers suspected to have issued verbal threats on the flight." She said all the passengers and crew on board the flight were safe and were receiving trauma counseling at the airport.

"ACSA would like to take the opportunity to highlight to the public the seriousness of making verbal threats to interfere unlawfully with civil aviation," she said.

South Africa's national police spokesman Capt Dennis Adriao said the men, aged 36 and 32, were arrested for contraventions of the Civil Aviation Act.

They were in custody, and detectives were taking statements from passengers and airline staff before deciding exactly what the men would be charged with.