Frankfurt Airport Evacuated Following Security Breach

Frankfurt, Germany

A portion of Frankfurt Airport was evacuated on Tuesday after passengers who had tested positive for explosives at the security checkpoint were inadvertently allowed to continue into the secure area of the terminal.

The incident took place in area A of the airport’s Terminal 1.

As of 7 p.m. Central European Time, 97 flights in and out of the airport had been cancelled as a result of the incident and 490 were delayed.

“As a result of the two-hour closure, the effects on flight operations are expected to continue into the late evening,” Lufthansa said in a message on its website. “Passengers may be affected by delays in some cases, and possibly also cancellations.”

The incident followed a similar incident at Munich Airport last week in which 300 flights were cancelled.

“The cause of the evacuation of the terminal was an error by a security officer,” German police said on Twitter. “Despite a positive test for explosives, a French family of four were allowed to leave the security zone.”

The family was located, rescreened, and allowed to continue on its way.

The terminal reopened approximately two hours after the partial evacuation.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)