Thiruvananthapuram, March 21: A Kingfisher flight was grounded here on Sunday after a crude bomb was discovered in the cargo section of the plane.
The flight, IT-4731 from Bangalore to Thiruvananthapuram, had successfully landed at the airport at 8.25 am and all passengers deplaned. During the cleaning process, the staff of the flight detected a suspicious object of the size of a cricket ball in the cargo section.
The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel at the airport were informed and on inspection, they confirmed the object was a crude bomb.
The explosive was found wrapped in a newspaper, said city Police Commissioner MR Ajith Kumar.
The aircraft was immediately cordoned off and security officials at the site defused the bomb.
Authorities have begun investigating how such a lapse took place, which could have led to a disaster.
“We are investigating into how this happened. Certainly this is a security lapse. The explosive is now in the possession of experts and investigations will reveal what exactly it is,” Kumar said.
The crude bomb has been sent for forensic investigation.
——–Agencies