Six Canadian airports disrupted by bomb threats, later deemed false

Canadian airports returned to normal operations Thursday(July 3) after a wave of bomb threats forced evacuations and delayed dozens of flights. Nav Canada, the country’s air navigation service provider, said the threats affected operations at facilities in Ottawa, Montreal, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Calgary, and Vancouver. In a post on social media, Nav Canada said service was gradually resuming following “the evacuation of a number of our sites” and threat assessments by authorities.

RCMP in Richmond, British Columbia, said they received a report of a threat at the Nav Canada control tower at Vancouver International Airport around 2 am local time. “After the initial investigation, investigators determined this to be a false report and that there is no credible threat to public safety,” said Cpl. Melissa Lui, Richmond RCMP media officer. The tower was evacuated, and no threats were found after a search.

A spokesperson for the US Federal Aviation Administration, Kevin Morris, said in a statement that there were “brief ground stops” at airports in Montreal and Ottawa. These were lifted at around 7:40 am. Eastern time.


Transport Canada spokesperson Hicham Ayoun said the department was working with airport authorities, Nav Canada, and local law enforcement “to fully assess the situation.” Ayoun added that “as a result of this morning’s events, some flights may still be delayed over the next hours.”

The Ottawa airport said in an update shortly after 10 am that it was close to resuming normal operations. Earlier in the day, it had warned of a “security incident” and potential disruptions. Several flights were delayed, according to the airport’s website.

Austin De St. Croix, a traveler at the Ottawa airport, said he was headed to Vancouver when his flight was suddenly canceled. “I went to check in, and then between checking in and the security gate, they told me my flight was cancelled, no info,” he said.

The Vancouver airport confirmed it was “aware of a security concern” involving Nav Canada operations and other airports. “Safety and security remain our top priority and a thorough threat assessment was conducted,” it said in a social media post.

The Montreal airport also confirmed that it was back in full operation.

Richmond RCMP has asked anyone with information related to the threat at Vancouver’s Nav Canada tower to contact police and reference file number 2025-21021.

Travelers were being advised to check the status of their flights before heading to the airport.