The cabin crew of Cebu Pacific flight 5J851 from Manila found a bomb threat message written on tissue paper inside the plane's lavatory at Zamboanga International Airport (ZIA) on the morning of June 14. The tissue read "may bomba" and was found around 8:20 a.m. after passengers disembarked.
This was immediately reported to ground security, and the entire plane was immediately inspected. No explosives were found, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP). Following this, paneling operations were also conducted at the airport's Passenger Terminal Building as an added precaution.
The situation was declared under control at around 8:59 a.m. and the airport has returned to normal operations. According to CAAP, this type of threat is a serious security issue. The agency reminds: Anyone who makes a fake or malicious bomb threat can be imprisoned for up to 5 years or fined up to P40,000. Anyone caught while being tried in a military court will also not be allowed to post bail.
