Runway closed at Japan airport after dud shell explodes on taxiway
MIYAZAKI, Japan, Oct. 2 Kyodo - A dud shell exploded on a taxiway at Miyazaki Airport in southwestern Japan on Wednesday morning, forcing the closure of its runway, although no injuries were reported, authorities said.
Video footage from the Civil Aviation College, which uses the airport as a pilot training base, showed a black cloud of dust and debris shooting up from the ground just two minutes after an aircraft passed nearby.
The transport ministry said its officials found a hole with a diameter of 7 meters and a depth of 1 meter on the taxiway after an explosion was heard around 8 a.m. The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force's explosive ordnance disposal unit investigated the site.
All flights to and from the airport, from which the pilots who carried out "kamikaze" missions during World War II took off, were suspended from around 9 a.m., with airport authorities allowing each airline to decide when to resume their services on Thursday.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told a press conference in Tokyo that a U.S.-made bomb was the cause of the explosion.
Formerly an air base of the Imperial Japanese Navy, the airport has often been affected by discoveries of unexploded U.S. bombs from World War II. Two unexploded shells were found at the airport in 2011 and another in 2021.
Local firefighters said they received a report at around 8:10 a.m. that an explosion was heard. Police instructed airport personnel to evacuate the area.
Long lines formed at airline counters in the airport's lobby following the incident.
"I had switched to another flight but that too has been canceled, so I talked with my company and decided to extend my stay," said Shun Akahori, 28, from Osaka, who was visiting the prefecture for business.
The facility is some 5 kilometers from central Miyazaki, the capital of Miyazaki Prefecture, and serves domestic routes, including those to and from Tokyo's Haneda airport and Osaka airport, as well as international routes.
==Kyodo
