Just days before Fiji celebrated Independence Day, the first jumbo jet flight across the South Pacific struck further troubles at the Nadi Airport because of a bomb scare, as was reported by The Fiji Times on October 6, 1970.
The huge Pan American Airways Boeing 747 was delayed by almost three hours as passengers’ personal effects, baggage and cargo were unloaded and searched.
An alert was declared after a caller said a bomb was timed to explode two hours after the Boeing left Sydney for Nadi.
Earlier, the flight was delayed because of mechanical trouble in Los Angeles on its way south.
It also caused chaos at the Nadi Airport terminal when it arrived at the same time as two other flights.
The jet — on Pan American’s inaugural jumbo jet service to the South Pacific and Australia — was returning to Los Angeles via Nadi and Honolulu when airline officials were advised of the bomb scare.
The report stated that airline, civil aviation, police and Customs staff members at Nadi Airport were placed on an alert to await the jet’s arrival before 4am.
Under standard emergency procedure, the jet was taxied off the main runway after landing and parked in an open area.
Its 159 passengers were ferried from the parking area to the airport hangar — half a mile from the terminal building.
All their personal effects, baggage and cargo unloaded from the aircraft were searched thoroughly.
Teams of men swarmed over the aircraft soon afterwards to search the interior, cargo and baggage holds.
The aircraft left for Honolulu soon after 7.30am.
The then Minister for Communications, Works and Tourism Charles A Stinson said congestion in the terminal during the stopover of the jet on that Sunday was “only to be expected”.
Mr Stinson said he had heard nothing official from the airport authorities about the situation after the arrival of the giant aircraft.
“But the fact that flight delays had caused it to arrive at Nadi when two other aircraft were also there had no doubt made the situation worse than it would have been normally,” he said.
He referred to plans of expanding passenger facilities at the airport, but said future overcrowding, if it occurred, would simply have to be borne until the new facilities were completed.
“Nobody, including the airlines operating the big jets, had believed the present Nadi facilities would be entirely adequate.”
Mr Stinson said if the jumbo jets meant large numbers of passengers disembarking at Nadi, the Government might have to consider measures to improve Customs and baggage handling.
P Thorburn, the then airport manager, declined to comment on the situation at the terminal while the jet was at the airport.
