Gunmen open fire at Kandahar Airport

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (CNN) -- U.S. troops fired machine guns and scrambled Apache helicopters Wednesday after attackers opened fire at the Kandahar Airport.

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The U.S. Central Command said the attackers used only small arms to fire at the southern Afghan airport, where U.S. forces have been based since last December. The gunfire was "ineffective" and no Americans were injured, U.S. military officials said.

U.S. forces captured seven people along the airport's western perimeter, and another three people sped away in a vehicle, according to U.S. Central Command. Officials told CNN all seven were later released after authorities found they had nothing to do with the shooting.

The firing came after muffled explosions were heard from the west around 7:30 p.m. (10 a.m. EST) U.S. Army officials said troops on the western perimeter had detected incoming fire and shot back. Other U.S. soldiers, meanwhile, fired tracers through the front windows of the airport's terminal.

The gunfire lasted for about five minutes. During that time, soldiers ran to their fighting positions and estimated 25 to 30 sped toward the perimeter on Humvees. A C-17 aircraft took off from the airport's runway during the exchange, but the runway's lights were turned off after it left the ground.

Occasional lights could be seen flickering beyond the perimeter and Apache helicopter gunships could be heard flying over the airport's western perimeter.

About an hour after the first shots rang out, a loud explosion and a bright flash could be seen on a mountain some distance from the airport.

The airport has reopened, and the Army said planes would be landing at the facility again.