United Airlines Bomb Threat

Evanne Evans, 22 May 2025

On May 20, 2025, United Airlines Flight 1169, en route from Honolulu to Los Angeles, was compelled to return to Daniel K. Inouye International Airport after a bomb threat was discovered written on a lavatory mirror.

The Boeing 777, carrying 339 passengers and 10 crew members, had departed Honolulu at approximately 9:40 p.m. local time. The alarming message was found approximately 90 minutes into the flight, prompting the flight crew to initiate emergency protocols and return to Honolulu, where the aircraft landed safely at 1:35 a.m. on May 21. As reported by Simple Flying (22 May, 2025), upon landing, the aircraft was met by law enforcement officials, security officers, bomb squad experts and sniffer dogs. who conducted a thorough security sweep of the plane. Passengers were held onboard for approximately four hours while bomb-sniffing dogs and security personnel inspected the aircraft and screened each individual.

A passenger recounted the experience, saying they had overheard a flight member explaining someone had written a threatening message on the bathroom mirror that there was a bomb on the plane.

It was also determined that on the very same day that a U.S. Navy technician was arrested for also making a false bomb threat on Hawaiian Airlines, causing the evacuation of 293 to disembark at San Diego Airport.

United Airlines confirmed the incident, emphasizing that all passengers and crew were safely returned to Honolulu and rebooked on later flights. The FBI has launched an investigation into the matter but has not released further details, citing the ongoing nature of the case.

According to America’s Cyber Defence Agency, different types of bomb threats require different safety protocols with moderate to high threats, resulting in lockdown of the site location and conduct a full or partial search for a device and full area evacuation of the site location.

These incidents underscore the importance of stringent security measures in the U.S and other domestic and International Airports relating to security vigilance for the safety and protection of airline crew and passengers.