Birmingham Airport halted all flights on Tuesday afternoon due to a reported security incident involving an Aer Lingus aircraft. West Midlands Police were alerted at approximately 16:00 BST following reports of a suspicious item on a flight destined for Belfast. The situation led to the airport’s closure until 18:00 BST.
Authorities later clarified the situation, describing it as “a false call” with the item found to be non-suspicious. The Aer Lingus plane, which had been diverted shortly after takeoff, safely returned and landed at Birmingham Airport just after 16:00 BST.
Following the landing, all passengers and crew were evacuated from the aircraft as precautionary measures were undertaken. Specialist officers, including a dog unit, conducted a thorough search of the plane, according to West Midlands Police.
Aer Lingus responded by confirming that the item in question on their regional Birmingham to Belfast flight posed no security threat. The airline is currently arranging accommodations for passengers affected by the disruption.
A spokesperson for Birmingham Airport assured that the aircraft landed safely and advised travelers to proceed with their plans, checking in as usual. However, the incident caused delays of more than two hours for several departing flights, as indicated by the airport’s departure updates.
East Midlands Airport also accommodated a number of diverted flights, including a Ryanair flight from Lanzarote, due to the temporary closure of Birmingham.
Additionally, train services at the nearby Birmingham International railway station were halted, with West Midlands Railway linking the suspension to the airport incident. Network Rail reported that all rail lines reopened around 18:20 BST, but some disruption continued until about 19:00 BST.
Among the affected passengers was Joanne Roberts and her two-year-old daughter, who were delayed on a flight to Egypt scheduled to depart at 15:25 BST. Roberts shared with the BBC that they had been onboard since 15:00 BST, learning of the mayday call from another plane through announcements and later from the airline staff that emergency services had responded.
During the wait, passengers were kept informed of developments approximately every 20 minutes, while being provided with water, Sudoku, and coloring activities for children.
By 18:10 BST, Roberts relayed to the BBC that airline staff had announced the imminent reopening of the runway, signaling a return to normal operations soon.
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