All flights were temporarily halted at a significant airport in Washington DC, as confirmed by the Federal Aviation Administration. Departing flights at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport were suspended for over an hour starting at 11:18 am ET due to a reported “bomb threat”. Operations resumed after the main runway reopened at 12:50 pm, with passengers observed being escorted off a plane on the runway. The FAA ensured the aircraft was relocated “away from the terminal”.
While flights have now resumed, departing flights are facing an average delay of 51 minutes, with some experiencing delays of over two hours, according to the airport authorities. Reports indicated that the threat was directed towards United Airlines flight UA512 arriving from Houston IAD. The plane involved, a Boeing 737 MAX 8, was relocated for investigations by the authorities.
The Federal Aviation Administration, responsible for civil aviation safety, issued a statement regarding the incident. Video footage from the scene showed a group of police officers gathered behind a United Airlines aircraft on the runway, as reported by CBS affiliate WUSA. CNN correspondent Pete Muntean mentioned that the flight suspension was due to “a bomb threat on a plane”.
Flight tracking site FlightRadar24 mentioned that flights were paused due to an unconfirmed threat specifically targeting a United Airlines plane. All operations at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport came to a halt starting at 11:18 am ET following a security emergency declaration at 11:30 am ET.