Burlington International Airport in Vermont was closed for about three hours Sunday after a bomb threat note was found in the bathroom of a United Airlines flight.
The pilot notified air traffic control that a threat was found in one of the plane’s bathrooms about 20 minutes before it landed, according to MyNBC5.
The flight, which took off from Newark earlier that day, was directed to a separate area on the runway, where it was searched with bomb-sniffing dogs as part of the emergency response, Burlington police said.
Acting State Senate President Phil Baruth, who was aboard the flight, said the 65 passengers were allowed off the plane after about two hours and taken to a hangar.
“They cut us off with cops on both ends and they don’t know if one of us could be a bad actor so it doesn’t feel right,” he told WCAX-TV.
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During the investigation, the airport was closed for about three hours, but no incoming flights were cancelled.
Investigators determined that there was no credible threat to the plane.
“What we have here is a safe group of people. We have a safe plane. We have a secure airport. We have procedures that were followed and we have a successful outcome,” said Jon Murad, acting chief of the Burlington Police Department.
No injuries or arrests were reported and the airport was reopened to all air traffic at 7:30 p.m.
An airport spokesman said most of the passengers were reunited with their luggage on Monday morning. The spokesman added that the FBI was leading the investigation.
with cable news services
