Information
Miyazaki Airport in southern Japan reopened on Thursday after being closed due to an explosion caused by an unexploded World War II bomb. The explosion, which occurred just moments after an aircraft had passed the spot, created a large crater in the taxiway, leading to the cancellation of about 80 flights, affecting more than 3,400 passengers. Fortunately, no injuries were reported, and the damage was swiftly repaired overnight, allowing flights to resume. A bomb disposal team from Japan’s Self-Defense Forces confirmed that the explosion was caused by a US-made 250-kilogram bomb from World War II, with nearby witnesses capturing video footage of the event.
Miyazaki Airport, originally built as a flight training field by the Imperial Japanese Navy in 1943, has had prior incidents of unexploded bombs being discovered, with similar finds reported in 2021, 2011, and 2009. The airport and surrounding areas are known for being heavily bombed by the US Air Force during World War II, as part of widespread air raids that devastated many Japanese cities. Unexploded ordnance remains a persistent issue across Japan, often unearthed during construction projects, with hundreds of tons still buried throughout the country. These remnants of wartime bombardments serve as a reminder of the intense conflict that took place, particularly in the final years of the war.
Source: AFP, AP, Reuters
So what
It is not uncommon to find unexploded ordinates (“UXOs”) such as this in historic warzones around the world. It isn’t uncommon for cities in Germany, and also central London, to have areas locked down when a UXO is discovered. However, It is uncommon for them to be detonated randomly like this. One question that will need to be answered is how the runway was built without any checks being conducted or if they were done poorly.
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