SYRACUSE -- Update
Officials at Hancock Airport say the North Terminal was shut down around 5:30 this morning when the pilot of a Comair flight scheduled to leave the airport noticed what he believed to be a suspicious black box in row 5 of his aircraft. He contacted airport authorities, who evacuated the terminal. The suspicious box was removed from the plane about 6;30 am, and the North Terminal was reopened and passenger allowed to proceed through the security checkpoint. It turned out the box contained nothing dangerous. We're told the box is a remote control electronic device for commercial sanding equipment. Investigators do not know if it was left in the plane by a passenger or a maintenance worker.
Earlier reports
Passengers were evacuated from part of the North Terminal at Syracuse's Hancock Airport this morning after officials say an "item' was discovered around 5:30am. Spokesperson Chris Reale would not say what the item was or where it was discovered. Passengers were asked to leave the area of the terminal beyond the security checkpoint. The situation was cleared up sometime after 7:15 am, and airport officials say the facility is operating normally at this hour.
Airport officials would not provide any further details, but will hold a media briefing this morning. We have a crew there and will provide any additional information when it becomes available.
