Martha’s Vineyard Airport was evacuated and closed for about two hours Sunday after a security threat, airport manager Geoff Freeman said.
Mr. Freeman said at about 12:30 p.m., a “security situation,” involving a departing private aircraft occurred at the Island’s main airport, forcing the airport staff and law enforcement to evacuate the terminal.
On Monday, West Tisbury police Chief Matt Mincone said there was a hoax call made about a potential threat on a plane that had already left the airport. There was never a direct threat to the airport and the plane involved was already near Alabama at the time of the call, he said.
Several other agencies declined to give more details on the incident. The airport referred further questions on the incident to state police. State police deferred to the Federal Aviation Administration; soon afterward, a spokesman for the FAA referred the Gazette to local authorities.
The airport reopened shortly before 2:30 p.m. and planes were flying again, Mr. Freeman said.
Shortly before 3 p.m., there were only a handful of passengers sitting in the terminal. Several said they had not been at the airport when the evacuation happened and hoped their flights would be getting off on time.
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