A United Airlines flight from Houston\u2019s Bush Airport was evacuated at Reagan National, prompting a ground stop in Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n
HOUSTON \u2014 A United Airlines flight from Houston\u2019s George Bush Intercontinental Airport was evacuated Tuesday afternoon after landing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport following what federal officials have now confirmed was a bomb threat.<\/p>\n
According to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, the flight landed safely and passengers were bused to the terminal while law enforcement conducted a full search of the aircraft.<\/p>\n
\u201cEarlier today a United flight from Houston to Washington D.C. received a bomb threat. The flight landed safely at DCA, passengers were evacuated, and law enforcement conducted a full search of the aircraft,\u201d Duffy wrote on X. \u201cThe FAA has received the all clear and operations have resumed. I want to thank our brave men and women in law enforcement for their quick response.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nThreat prompted temporary ground stop in Washington, D.C. <\/p>\n
Emergency crews surrounded the plane on the tarmac as officials sent a staircase truck to help passengers deplane. Video from KHOU 11\u2019s sister station, WUSA9 in Washington, D.C., showed buses taking passengers to the terminal.<\/p>\n
Reagan National Airport officials confirmed the evacuation in a post on X, stating:<\/p>\n
\u201cAll flight operations are being held at Reagan National while passengers on a United Airlines flight are being offloaded and bussed to the terminal. We will provide more information as it becomes available.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop at 10:18 a.m. CT, which was expected to remain in effect until at least 1:30 p.m., with a \u201cmedium\u201d chance of extension. Emergency vehicles were seen parked near the United flight, which appeared to be the only aircraft on the tarmac at the time.<\/p>\n
Operations have since resumed at Reagan National, according to Secretary Duffy\u2019s update.<\/p>\n
In a new statement, Reagan National Airport and the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority confirmed that United Airlines flight 512 landed at 10:30 a.m. CT and stopped on an adjacent runway away from the terminal \u201cin response to a security threat.\u201d<\/p>\n Runways remained closed until passengers were safely offloaded and bused to the terminal, according to airport officials. The runways reopened at 11:50 a.m., and a thorough investigation is underway by MWAA Police with assistance from multiple law enforcement partners.<\/p>\n Officials added that several flights were diverted to other airports during the closure and warned that travelers should expect delays throughout the afternoon.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople meeting passengers or flying this afternoon should expect delays and check with their airline for updated flight information,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n
Flight tracking site FlightRadar24 initially reported the issue as an \u201cunconfirmed threat\u201d involving a United flight that had arrived from Houston. The plane\u2019s arrival and subsequent evacuation drew a large emergency response but no injuries have been reported.<\/p>\n United Airlines has not released additional details about the incident or the nature of the threat.<\/p>\n
This was the second time in less than a week that flights at Reagan National were grounded for security reasons. The FAA said a previous ground stop last Wednesday, Oct. 29, was linked to military activities in the area.<\/p>\n Nearby airports, Washington Dulles and Baltimore\/Washington International, were not affected and continued normal operations throughout Tuesday afternoon.<\/p>\n
\nAirport confirms flight number, runway closure, and ongoing investigation<\/strong> <\/p>\n
\nFlight originated in Houston <\/p>\n
\nSecond security-related ground stop in a week <\/p>\n