Buried WW2 bomb explodes at Japanese airport – everything we know so far

Nearly 90 flights were canceled in Japan after an unexploded American bomb from the Second World War exploded unexpectedly on the taxiway of a regional airport.

The Miyazaki Airport in southwest Japan shut its runway on Wednesday after a dud shell exploded shortly before 8am (local time), forming a 23ft-wide and 3.2ft-deep crater in the middle of the taxiway.

No one suffered injuries and there were no aircraft nearby during the explosion, the land and transport ministry said.

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A bomb disposal team from the Ground Self-Defence Force found the explosion was caused by an American bomb that had been buried beneath the land surface, probably during a wartime raid.

The team said the explosive weighed 250kg and authorities were investigating how it exploded.

Following the explosion, asphalt fragments were scattered over a radius of 200m, including the runway, the authorities said. A video recorded by a nearby aviation school showed the blast spewing pieces of asphalt into the air like a fountain.

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The runway shutdown led to the grounding of 87 flights but there was no danger of further explosions, said top government spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi.

The affected flights were operated by Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways among others, connecting Miyazaki with cities such as Tokyo, Osaka and Fukuoka.

The local firefighters, who were the first responders, said they received a report that an explosion was heard. The fire department “received a call from the airport at 7.59am (local time) that there was an incident involving smoke”, its spokesman said.

Shortly after, the police instructed airport personnel to evacuate the area.

At least four flights used the taxiway on Wednesday morning before the blast, NHK World reported. A Japan Airlines flight with 93 people on board had passed the site just a few minutes before the explosive detonated.

The flight cancellations affected nearly 3,4000 people, prompting some passengers to extend their stay.

“I had switched to another flight but that too has been canceled, so I talked with my company and decided to extend my stay,” Shun Akahori, 28, told Kyodo News. He was traveling back to Osaka after finishing business in the prefecture.

The runway reopened on Thursday morning with the departure of a Japan Airlines flight to Fukoka around 7.40am (local time).

The Miyazaki airport, located at the southeast end of Kyushu island, was a base for the Imperial Japanese Navy until the end of WWII. Hundreds of young “kamikaze” pilots used the air base to set off on their final missions.

Multiple unexploded bombs dropped by the US military have previously been found at Miyazaki airport, the transport ministry official said.

More than 79 years since the end of the war, unexploded bombs from the intense airstrikes are still found across Japan today.

Other unexploded bombs dropped by the US were reportedly found at a nearby construction site in 2009 and 2011.

A total of 2,348 bombs weighing 37.5 tonnes were disposed of during fiscal year 2023, the Self-Defense Forces have said, according to Reuters.