Aircraft under duress at Burlington airport in Vermont after a note was found saying there was a device on board
- United Airlines flight from Newark to Burlington was boarded by a bomb squad
- Passengers were not allowed to touch their items as K-9 police swept the plane.
- After two hours in the cabin, passengers could leave without their belongings.
The Vermont State Police Bomb Squad boarded a plane at the Burlington airport after a threatening note was discovered.
After landing in Vermont around 4:30 p.m. Sunday, passengers on United Airlines Flight 3613 from New Jersey were held on the plane for two hours and told not to touch their items in the overhead bins.
A ‘phase 5’ response, the most serious classification designated by the FAA, was issued and K-9 officers were used to sweep the plane for a device.
Eventually, the passengers were evacuated from the plane but were unable to take their items with them.
A bomb squad boarded a United Airlines flight from Newark to Burlington after a note was discovered suggesting a device was on the plane.
A ‘phase 5’ response was issued and K-9 officers were used to sweep the plane for a device.
Roads near the airport were closed from 7:00 p.m. on Sunday and all flights in and out of the airport were suspended.
South Burlington Police Chief Shawn Burke said his department was helping Burlington police investigate the threat.
A local WPTZ presenter, Alice Kang, said on Twitter that she was on the plane and was trapped for nearly two hours as police and emergency crews flooded the runway.
“More than a dozen emergency teams at BTV airport after a report of a plane under duress,” Kang wrote. The pilot has just told us that there is a ‘situation’ and that we have to remain seated.
He posted an update nearly two hours after landing saying people were starting to get restless.
‘People are getting frustrated. They want to know what is happening. It’s been almost 2 hours since we landed. The flight attendants told us to wait for the law enforcement officers on the plane,” he wrote.
Eye surgeon Dr. Sidney Chang tweets a photo of the police response at the Burlington airport on March 12 after a possible threat aboard a plane.
Roads near the Burlington airport were closed and flights in and out were suspended on Sunday.
WPTZ news anchor Alice Kang, who was on board, said more than a dozen teams attended the venue.
We are not allowed to touch or take anything from the overhead compartments.
Then, at 7:20 p.m., the passengers were allowed to leave, but they did not have any of their items left on the plane.
“A lot of people don’t have their car keys with them,” Kang tweeted at the time.
According to Burlington Airport, Phase 5 is activated when there is an emergency involving 30 or more people that requires “significant off-airport emergency resources.”