A bomb threat delayed American Airlines AA2051 from El Paso International Airport (ELP) to Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) on Friday, February 17th. The flight was taxiing, ready for take-off, when a bomb threat was made.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was quick to advise the bomb threat was not credible, and the flight took off eventually five and a half hours later. As reported by KSTP News, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey Downey released this statement:
“While an assessment is always conducted following receipt of a threat, there is no known credible threat to the aircraft or passengers at this time.”
Flight AA2051
American Airlines AA2051 was due to depart from El Paso International Airport (ELP) at 11:52, arriving at Chicago O’Hare International Airport at 15:54. Instead, the aircraft finally left Texas at 17:19, arriving safely in Chicago two hours and 23 minutes later at 20:42.
The eight-year-old Airbus A319, registration N9018E, first took to the skies in June 2014 and has flown for American Airlines (AA) since it was leased from Aviation Capital Group (ACG).
American Airlines statement to media:
American Airlines released this statement to Fox Business relating to the incident:
“Prior to departure, American Airlines flight 2051 with service from El Paso, Texas (ELP) to Chicago (ORD) returned to the gate and was met by law enforcement due to a possible security issue,
“Safety and security are our top priorities and we thank our customers for their understanding and cooperation and our team members for their professionalism.”
Aircraft moved to a secure area of the airport.
After the threat was made, the aircraft taxied to a designated area at the airport, where passengers waited in a secure area, and baggage was unloaded onto the apron and rescreened. Once the FBI took their expected precautions and were satisfied there was no credibility to the threat, the flight was safe to depart. No more information has been released at the time of writing on where or who the threat came from.
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Multiple threats already for 2023
As previously reported by Simple Flying, Spirit Airlines has encountered two bomb threats for 2023, starting with a disgruntled passenger looking to travel from Orlando to Pensacola stating there was a bomb onboard due to his upset at the ultra-low-cost airline’s excess baggage charges. He was quickly taken into custody for questioning.
The FBI is also investigating an incident at Manchester Boston Regional Airport (MHT) on February 11th. Spirit Airlines flight 2025, operating an Airbus A321, registered as N682NK, was preparing to depart for Tampa International Airport (TPA), Florida when the airport’s communication center received a call indicating a potential bomb threat against the flight.
Another threat towards Frontier F9 2346 from Palm Beach to Philadelphia required the airport’s Concourse C to be evacuated for several hours while local and federal officials investigated the incident after a passenger claimed to have explosives in his bag.