Man Charged over Bomb Scare at Gladstone Airport Friday

As we mentioned on our Facebook page, a bomb scare brought Gladstone Airport to a standstill late on Friday 28 March when a man alerted airport staff that he was carrying an explosive in his backpack.  Local plane spotters Jamie and Tash captured some images of the scene as the terminal building was evacuated around 4.30pm, and flights were not allowed to depart or arrive at the terminal building.

  

QantasLink (Cobham Aviation) Boeing B717-200 VH-NXI and Virgin Australia Regional Airlines ATR 72-500 VH-FVI were allowed to touch down at Gladstone Airport, although were forced to park away from the terminal until the all-clear was given.

QantasLink Dash-8-Q400 VH-QOV was given permission to depart during the scare as it was loaded and fully prepared before the evacuation.

The local Gladstone Observer newspaper reports that Gladstone Airport reopened at about 6.15pm Friday evening.  

They go on to report that police have charged a 50-year-old man following the incident.  Police will allege the man was being processed as a passenger when he spoke about having explosives in his luggage.  He has been charged with one count of falsely state bomb present and is due to appear in the Gladstone Magistrates Court next week.

Photos taken by Jamie and Tash  ©