A missing pair of scissors brought an international airport in Japan to a standstill last Saturday. The unusual security situation at New Chitose Airport in Hokkaido forced 36 flights to be canceled and 201 flights to be delayed, the BBC reports. Considering a winter storm pushed Southwest Airlines into a scheduling meltdown nearly two years ago, it’s not surprising commercial air travel is an operational tight-rope walk.
The scissors went missing from a store past the terminal’s security checkpoint, according to One Mile At A Time. As a result, authorities forced every passenger to go through security again in an attempt to find the implement. The second screening was lengthy and tedious as everyone filed through the checkpoint at once. However, the scissors weren’t found, and the airport resumed operations two hours later.
An airport worker found the scissors the next day in the same store where they had gone missing. The scissors weren’t merchandise, as most airports don’t allow sharp implements to be publicly available beyond the checkpoint for security reasons. They were likely a tool used by staff that went missing. An airport spokesperson explained:
“We recognize that this occurred as a result of insufficient storage and management systems at the store. We are aware that this is also an incident that could be linked to hijacking or terrorism, and will once again work to ensure thorough management awareness.”
There was reason for concern, considering that there was a large influx of passengers flying home after a holiday weekend in Japan and the country sadly has a history of mass stabbings. The airport at least took the credible threat seriously, but you’d just wish they had given the story a second look-over.