Unruly Group at LAX Disrupts Flights

An unruly group that crashed through security at Los Angeles International Airport on Wednesday forced the evacuation of more than 1,000 passengers from Terminal 2, delaying flights for up to two hours on the busiest day of the year.

Airport spokesman Scott Read said the incident occurred at 10:40 a.m., when a large group brushed past the terminal’s security checkpoint without the guards’ consent. Security personnel were forced to shut down the gate while they and airport police searched for anything out of the ordinary, including the possibility of a bomb.

The security breach occurred at the spot where at least 200 members of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees Union were preparing to protest working conditions and wages. Read said some of those protesters may have been among the security violators, but a union spokeswoman denied that.

Passengers leaving for business trips, vacations and Thanksgiving feasts were pushed back from the terminal’s departure gates area, ending up crammed together on escalators, stairs and in the foyer that connects the terminal’s ticket counters and gates.

“What a freakin’ nightmare,” said Greg Smith, who had arrived at the airport an hour and a half early for his flight to Detroit. “I thought I was smart getting here early. Now this.”

Although flights were delayed, no one missed a flight because of the incident, Read said. There were no arrests.

The terminal, which includes Northwest, Asiana and Virgin Atlantic, was evacuated in about 20 minutes. For the next two hours, people who had expected to be airborne found themselves standing amid a mass of impatient fellow travelers. Packed sardine-style, many joked about their plight, saying it was typical of Los Angeles.

“We’ve been stuck in traffic the whole time we’ve been here, this is no different,” said Marcos Anderson, who was visiting for five days from Calgary, Canada.

About 4:30 p.m., the airport was again the scene of confusion. Members of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees Union joined the Service Employees Union and marched through the airport to demand that airlines and subcontractors abide by Los Angeles’ year-old “living wage” ordinance. The two groups have banded together in a movement called Respect LAX.

For just over an hour, union members protested throughout the airport, chanting slogans such as “No Justice, No Peace!” Airport police, fearing that the protest would get out of hand and cause another security problem, shadowed the workers.

The protest was fueled by the Los Angeles City Council’s unanimous passage Nov. 10 of an amendment urging that airport service workers and checkpoint screeners be included in the living wage increases.

Both unions said they plan to protest at the airport again next week, although they have not said specifically when.

Times staff writers Art Marroquin and Seema Mehta contributed to this story.