Bomb Squad Investigates Suspicious Package At Miami International Airport

Summary

• Security teams and the police were on high alert at Miami International Airport (MIA) after a suspicious package was found in the cargo area. The investigation lasted for about three hours.
• Passengers were relatively safe as the investigation took place in the cargo area, which is not near the main terminal. The airport advised passengers to check with their airlines for flight updates.
• MIA previously experienced a false bomb threat in the main passenger terminal. These incidents are not unique to Miami, as similar incidents have been reported nationwide.

Security teams and the police department were on high alert at Miami International Airport (MIA) after being aware of a suspicious package found within the airport on the afternoon of Friday, July 28th. This triggered an investigation that lasted for around three hours.

Incident

On Friday, at a time before 18:00, a police K-9 unit detected something strange about a package located within the cargo area of MIA. As reported by Miami Herald, this discovery resulted in the Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD)’s bomb squad and the FBI launching an investigation to determine the nature of the package.

However, after about three hours of investigation, at around 21:30, the team gave the all-clear signal after reaching the conclusion that the contents of the package were not explosive. Because the investigation was occurring in the cargo area, which is not near the main terminal, passengers were relatively safe.

The airport indicated on their social media that it was best for passengers to check with their airline regarding their flight.

Furthermore, according to reports from CBS, the package was discovered in the Air France cargo building. This led to all personnel being evacuated from the entire building. Air France operates two daily flights to MIA from its hub at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG). These are flights AF-090 and AF-092.

Simple Flying has reached out to MIA to understand what safety protocols the airport has in place to handle such situations safely. Any response received from the airport will be updated in this article.

Not the first time

MIA recently experienced another bomb threat, which also turned out to be false. However, this time, it was from an American Airlines passenger bound for São Paulo/Guarulhos International Airport (GRU).

This incident occurred in the main passenger terminal, at the gate, when the gate agent requested the passenger to check in his cabin bags due to the limited space available within the overhead lockers.

However, the situation was handled immediately and safely by the authorities, who detained the passenger and took him in for further questioning.

Not just Miami, many similar incidents have been reported recently within the country. One of the more severe cases was a bomb threat from an Alaska Airlines passenger onboard flight AS-334 from Atlanta to Seattle, which saw the aircraft divert to Spokane International Airport GEG and the airport operations being paused for hours.

Further investigation of the threat uncovered that the passenger who issued the threat wanted to be arrested for his own safety as he feared his life was in danger from cartel members waiting for his arrival in Seattle.

Another serious incident was when a note containing a bomb threat was found in the lavatory of a United Airlines Embraer E175 on a flight from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) to Burlington International Airport in Vermont.

This resulted in the pilot landing the aircraft at the destination, having alerted the ATC, who notified other relevant authorities. This resulted in the airport being closed for several hours, which would have affected the operation of several flights in and out of the airport, causing massive inconvenience for passengers and airlines.

Source: Miami Herald, CBS News.

• 

  Miami International Airport

  IATA/ICAO Code:

  MIA/KMIA

  Country:

  United States

  CEO:

  Ralph Cutié

  Passenger Count :

  37,302,456 (2021)

  Runways :

  8L/26R – 2,621m (8,600ft) |8R/26L – 3,202m (10,505ft) |9/27 – 3,967m (13,015ft) |12/30 – 2,853m (9,360ft)

  Terminals:

  North Terminal |Central Terminal |South Terminal