Bomb threats delay domestic flights

Two Cebu Pacific flights were delayed yesterday morning after telephoned threats sparked a bomb alert at the Manila Domestic Airport in Pasay City.

Airport sources said two separate calls were made to the cargo terminal section of Cebu Pacific, informing personnel that bombs had been placed inside two of their DC-9 passenger aircraft.

The first threat was received at 4:30 a.m., involving Cebu Pacific Flight 5J-473 bound for Bacolod City. There were 37 passengers for the flight, which was supposed to take off at 5:10 a.m.

Fifteen minutes later, Cebu Pacific personnel received a second call, informing them that there was a bomb on Flight 5J-851 bound for Zamboanga City. The flight, which had 114 passengers, was scheduled to take off at 5:29 a.m.

Both calls were received before any of the passengers could board the two planes. Regional Aviation Security Office personnel with bomb-sniffing dogs checked both aircraft for bombs.

An hour-long search yielded no explosives. The first flight took off at 6:26 a.m. and the second at 6:48 a.m. – Sandy Araneta