Bristol Airport temporarily suspended all operations overnight on Friday 6 November after a suspicious package was reported on a grounded aircraft parked on the apron, triggering a security scare that forced one inbound flight to divert to Birmingham Airport.
The disruption happened on the evening of Friday 6 November, when a suspected suspicious item was discovered on a separate aircraft already parked at the airport. As a precaution, Bristol Airport halted operations while the item was investigated. The airport says the suspension lasted only "a short time."
One flight bound for Bristol was diverted to Birmingham Airport (BHX) while the scare was dealt with. That aircraft later returned to Bristol the same night once the all-clear was given.
A Bristol Airport spokesperson confirmed the item was found to pose no threat: "A suspected suspicious package was reported on an aircraft parked on the apron, which was investigated and deemed safe. Safety and security are our top priority. As a precaution, our operations were suspended for a short time. One flight was diverted to BHX. Bristol Airport is open and operating normally."
By Saturday 7 November, the airport confirmed it was back to operating normally, with no lingering impact on its published schedule.
The incident was first reported by Bristol Live, which spoke to the airport directly, and corroborated by Birmingham Live, which confirmed the same official statement and diversion details after contacting Birmingham Airport. Both outlets agree on the timeline: the package was found on Friday evening, operations paused briefly as a precaution, one flight diverted to BHX and returned to Bristol later that night, and normal operations resumed by Saturday morning.
Security scares involving unattended or suspicious items on aircraft are treated as a precaution rather than a confirmed threat in almost all cases, and a brief operational pause while items are checked is standard practice at UK airports. In this instance the disruption appears to have been short-lived and limited to a single diverted service, with no cancellations reported.
Passengers flying from or into Bristol Airport this weekend should see no residual impact, though it is always worth checking your airline's app for live flight status before setting off, particularly after any overnight disruption.
What this means for your journey: if you are dropping off or collecting passengers at Bristol Airport, normal operations mean no extra delays are expected at present. If you are driving in, check our /parking/ page for current charges and options, or see /public-transport/ for bus and rail links if you would rather avoid the drop-off fees.