A bomb found in a car at Belfast International Airport on Saturday had been there for almost a year, it emerged today.
Staff checking vehicles at the long-stay car park found a pipe bomb attached to cans of petrol. However it failed to detonate properly because of an apparent fault with the timing device.
It is believed the car, a Toyota Carina, had been there since last year and the bomb was meant to go off at the time the car was abandoned.
Scores of passengers on returning flights and unable to drive home had to be accommodated a nearby hotels on Saturday night because of the security alert.
The car carried a Northern Ireland registration number plate and police are trying to trace its history and to check records if there were any bomb warnings at the airport 18 miles from Belfast.
Politicians on all sides said they were shocked that a device could have gone undetected for so long, especially in such a public place where so many cars were parked.
PA