False alert at Chennai airport

Chennai: Tension prevailed at the Kamaraj domestic airport here for some time following an alert that a passenger on a Hyderabad-bound Air Deccan flight from Port Blair was carrying a bomb.
However, it was found that the alert was based on a misunderstanding by one of the airlines officials.
Airport sources said one Anand Natarajan, a resident of suburban Tambaram, had gone to Port Blair on tour. Planning to visit Hyderabad next, he had booked a ticket with the private airline.
However, he decided to cancel the visit after receiving an SMS from a friend about the tense situation prevailing in Hyderabad following Friday's bomb explosion in a mosque.
He informed the airline manager at Port Blair that he would get down at Chennai in transit as he had received an SMS about the Hyderabad bomb blast.
Mistaking his information, the manager sent an alert to airport officials here that the passenger was carrying a bomb, following which security was tightened and a bomb disposal squad took position.
20/05/07 Chennai Online

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Categories: Airports May 2007, Safety May 2007