Feb. 11—Manchester-Boston Regional Airport authorities and police took quick action after receiving a bomb threat against Spirit Airlines Flight 2025 to Tampa just before 11 a.m. Saturday.
The terminal was evacuated as New Hampshire State Police and bomb-sniffing dogs swept the plane and terminal before reopening around 1:45 p.m. All passengers needed to be rescreened by TSA.
" Spirit Airlines received a bomb threat and inbound passengers on two flights were deplaned and cleared," said Daniel Velez, the New England Region spokesman for TSA, in a statement. "K-9's completed a sweep of checked baggage and the sterlile area (the area behind security checkpoints) with negative results."
The state Department of Safety reported that the state police's bomb squad was called in to assist the investigation.
The FBI is investigating the incident, Airport Director Ted Kitchens said at a news conference Saturday at the airport.
"Passengers were removed from the aircraft, which was subsequently searched and cleared by law enforcement. All passengers and baggage were rescreened as the K-9 units swept the aircraft and all baggage per our established protocols," he said.
All passengers were asked to check in with their airlines as authorities continue to investigate.
"Safety is always our top priority, not only here in Manchester but throughout the entire aviation system," Kitchens said.
The Spirit Airlines plane, an Airbus A321 with 228 seats, which was scheduled to take off at 11:25 a.m., eventually departed at 3:11 p.m. according to a statement from Spirit.
"We thank our guests for their patience and understanding, and we thank law enforcement, the airport and our team members for their assistance in this matter," the statement reads.
Kitchens said this is the first time such an incident happened since he arrived as director about four years ago.
"I know we've had these in the past and they usually turn out to be not credible," he said.
Just before 1:45 p.m., the airport tweeted: "Our team and law enforcement partners have completed a cautionary security sweep of the Airport."
"It was a very impressive response from all our mutual aid partners as well as the airport team," Kitchens said.
The New Hampshire Department of Safety and Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management continues to monitor the situation, according to a news release.
Several flights were held short of the gates during the sweep.
"We didn't want to introduce more people to the terminal environment," Kitchens said. No flights need to be diverted.
As part of the investigation, Londonderry police blocked the airport entrance.
Londonderry Police Capt. Patrick Cheetham said he couldn't comment on details of the criminal investigation.
"We take all of these threats very seriously and we prepare and train for these things literally on a monthly basis," he said.
Mayor Joyce Craig said she appreciated the prompt action of all those involved in the investigation.
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