ARMY bomb disposal experts carried out a controlled explosion on a car at Dublin Airport early this morning after a warning from loyalist paramilitaries to a Belfast newspaper that two bombs had been planted, one in a car park and the second on a runway.
The airport was closed for more than an hour because of the alert, which resulted in delays to seven flights.
The area around the airport was sealed off shortly after 10 p.m. An intensive search led security personnel to a blue Toyota Carina with a Northern registration which was parked near the rental car area. The registered owner, who lives in Castlewellan, Co Down, was contacted and said that he had sold the vehicle in January to someone in Belfast. He was unable to name the purchaser.
The Army carried out the controlled explosion on the ear at 1.34 am. The all clear was given shortly afterwards.
The RUC had alerted gardai to the coded warning received by the Irish News from a loyalist organisation, believed to be the UVF. Traffic approaching the airport was diverted and Army bomb disposal experts were called in. One runway was checked immediately and cleared for incoming flights to land
Four incoming flights were delayed for two hours and a fifth, a Ryanair flight from London Stansted, was diverted to Shannon. It subsequently landed in Dublin at 1.10 am.
The other affected flights were a British Airways plane from London Gatwick, a Ryanair flight from Manchester, an Aer Lingus plane from London Heathrow and a flight from Frankfurt. Two outgoing charters flights, Britannia Airways to Palma, Majorca, and Air 2000 to Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, were also delayed for two hours.