Nairobi — A Kenya Airways flight from Nairobi to London was intercepted on Thursday afternoon due to what was described as a 'potential security threat.'

The Boeing 787 was diverted into London Stansted just before 3.45pm, Sky News reported.

It had been due to land at Heathrow Airport from Kenya's capital, Nairobi.

It is understood the Typhoon jets took over the interception from French jets and led it to land at Stanstead.

Kenya Airways headquarters in Nairobi said in a statement that it had received an alert of a potential security threat on board KQ100 operating from Nairobi to London Heathrow.

"KQ management in conjunction with the security authorities of Kenya and the UK carried out a thorough risk assessment of the threat. The crew onboard were briefed and all safety and security precautions were taken to ensure the safety and security of our crew and passengers on board," KQ said in a statement to the media.

It said the aircraft landed safely at Stansted airport for security clearance by the UK government security personnel but no further details were provided.