Due to what has been described as a security breach Keflavík International Airport was shut down shortly before five this afternoon, and all passengers evacuated and sent through weapons screening. According to the local news site Vísir there were between two and three thousand passengers in the airport when it was closed down. The authorities stress that there is no imminent danger.
A flight from Greenland causes chaos
The cause of the evacuation is that an airplane flying in from Nuuk in Greenland landed at three in the afternoon. The weapons screening at the Nuuk airport does not fulfill international standards, and therefore all passengers on the plane were supposed to pass through weapons screening upon their arrival in Keflavík.
Due to human error the plane was docked at the wrong gate and the passengers coming from Greenland entered the airport terminal without first passing through weapons screening. When this mistake was discovered the airport was immediately evacuated and all passengers ordered to pass through weapons screening again. Security guards are searching the airport to ensure that no weapons were left behind inside inside the terminal.
No danger
A spokesman for Isavia, which operates the airport, told the Vísir that the airport authorities do not believe there is any immediate danger, but that to ensure the safety of all flights leaving from Keflavík the airport has to be secured after this breach. All passengers in the airport when the Greenlandic flight docked must also be searched before they are allowed to re-enter.
The security sweep is expected to cause delays at the airport.
Due to what has been described as a security breach Keflavík International Airport was shut down shortly before five this afternoon, and all passengers evacuated and sent through weapons screening. According to the local news site Vísir there were between two and three thousand passengers in the airport when it was closed down. The authorities stress that there is no imminent danger.
A flight from Greenland causes chaos
The cause of the evacuation is that an airplane flying in from Nuuk in Greenland landed at three in the afternoon. The weapons screening at the Nuuk airport does not fulfill international standards, and therefore all passengers on the plane were supposed to pass through weapons screening upon their arrival in Keflavík.
Due to human error the plane was docked at the wrong gate and the passengers coming from Greenland entered the airport terminal without first passing through weapons screening. When this mistake was discovered the airport was immediately evacuated and all passengers ordered to pass through weapons screening again. Security guards are searching the airport to ensure that no weapons were left behind inside inside the terminal.
No danger
A spokesman for Isavia, which operates the airport, told the Vísir that the airport authorities do not believe there is any immediate danger, but that to ensure the safety of all flights leaving from Keflavík the airport has to be secured after this breach. All passengers in the airport when the Greenlandic flight docked must also be searched before they are allowed to re-enter.
The security sweep is expected to cause delays at the airport.
