Jon di Paolo, Sky News Online

The Metropolitan Police are carrying out searches in the UK after a suspected al Qaeda operative allegedly attempted to blow up a US passenger jet.

The man, said to be a student at a British university, is accused of trying to blow up a transatlantic aeroplane with explosives strapped to his leg on Christmas Day.

The Nigerian man caused panic as the jet was about to land at Detroit with 278 people aboard when he apparently tried to detonate some sort of bomb.

He was overpowered by passengers and crew after the device failed to ignite properly.

Sources have since told Sky News that the device was apparently hidden during transit in a pillow.

Passenger Syed Jafri said he was seated three rows behind the suspect and saw a glow and smelled smoke.

Then, he said, “a young man behind me jumped on him”.

“Next thing you know, there was a lot of panic,” he said.

The suspect had reportedly flown from Lagos, Nigeria to Amsterdam’s Schipol airport and transferred to Northwest Airlines – which is undergoing a merger with Delta Airlines – for the nine-hour flight to Detroit in an Airbus A330-330.

Security sources tell Sky that the man being investigated is Umar Abdulmutallab, who studied at University College London in 2007.

A student by that name is listed on the UCL website as a 3rd year Mechanical Engineering student in 2007, and was not previously known to UK security services.

Sources add that the suspect has not been in Britain recently but police are checking both his whereabouts and any significant UK connections to the attack.

American reports had previously named the suspect as Abdul Farouk Abdulmutallab, 23, who had applied for a US entry visa to attend a religious seminar.

He was not on the American “no-fly list” and an official said that after arrest he claimed to have been acting on instructions from Al Qaeda.

He later told authorities that he had used a syringe filled with chemicals to mix with powder taped to his leg, according to senior officials quoted anonymously in the US media.

UCL has been contacted by Sky News but could not immediately comment.

Representative Peter King of New York, the senior Republican on the House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee, said the explosive device was “fairly sophisticated”.

“(The device) appears to be different from what we’ve encountered before,” Mr King told Fox News.

“My understanding also is that while (the suspect) is not on a watch list, he definitely has terror connections… There is a terrorist nexus leading towards Al Qaeda involving this assailant.

“When it did go off he himself was seriously injured, my understanding is he has third-degree burns – this could have been catastrophic.”

President Barack Obama convened a high-level meeting, while Nigerian authorities launched an investigation into the travel movements of the suspect.

Meanwhile, passengers can now expect more detailed inspections after US authorities ordered airlines worldwide to tighten security and a reduced carry-on luggage allowance.

A representative for British Airways released the following statement: “The United States government has revised its security arrangements for all passengers travelling into the US.

“This includes additional screening of all US-bound passengers and hand luggage before they board their flights, this applies to all carriers.

“Passengers travelling to the US will only be allowed to carry one item of hand luggage.

“We apologise to passengers for any delays to their journeys. Safety and security are our top priorities and will not be compromised.”

A spokeswoman for BAA added that British passengers should adjust airport arrival plans prior to boarding.

“To support this important process, which will take time, we would advise passengers to leave more time to check in and limit the amount of baggage being taken on board the aircraft,” she said.

“If in any doubt, please contact the relevant airline for further information.”