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Agence France-Presse

London Gatwick Airport was forced to suspend all flights on Thursday due to drones flying over the airfield, causing misery for tens of thousands of stuck passengers just days before Christmas.
Flights into Gatwick, south of the British capital, were diverted to other airports while passengers waiting to take off faced gruelling delays.
Gatwick is the eighth-busiest airport in Europe and sits behind Mumbai as the world’s busiest single runway air hub.
A cat-and-mouse manhunt is under way to catch the drone operator.

Two drones were first spotted flying over the airport at around 9.00pm on Wednesday. The airfield briefly reopened at 3:00am on Thursday, but had to be closed again following further sightings.
‘Height of stupidity’: drone nearly hits passenger jet landing in New Zealand
“All flights to and from Gatwick are suspended due to ongoing drone activity around the airport. Unfortunately, there are significant delays and cancellations to all flights,” the airport said.

Been stuck on the tarmac for over an hour after landing at Luton instead of @Gatwick_Airport - crew have said all airports in the South are full to capacity. No idea how we're going to get home - no info on onward travel! pic.twitter.com/PYqfkw2fhN
— Amilia Rachel (@millie15395) December 20, 2018

“We apologise to everyone affected, but the safety of all our passengers and staff is our number one priority.”
Some 10,000 passengers were affected on Wednesday night, and a further 110,000 were due to either take off or land at the airport on 760 flights on Thursday.
More than 20 police units from two forces were searching for those responsible.

“We believe this to be a deliberate act to disrupt the airport. However, there are absolutely no indications to suggest this is terror-related,” said Superintendent Justin Burtenshaw of the local Sussex Police force.

3 hours after landing in Manchester and not gatwick and we’re still sat here waiting pic.twitter.com/xYDgsQfiBP
— Luke Mccomiskie (@mccomiskie98) December 20, 2018

“Each time we believe we get close to the operator, the drone disappears; when we look to reopen the airfield, the drone reappears.”
Chris Woodroofe, Gatwick’s chief operating officer, told BBC radio that it would be dangerous to shoot at the drone due to the danger of stray bullets.
Inside the airport, weary passengers faced a grim wait to reach their destinations, with many returning home for the holidays.

pic.twitter.com/WFPVoB54bt
— Gatwick Airport LGW (@Gatwick_Airport) December 20, 2018

Gisele Fenech, 43, who was travelling to Malta, was among those stranded.
“We’re meeting family and it’s my daughter’s birthday today so it’s gone all wrong. We’ve been looking forward to this for so long,” she told AFP.
“Everyone’s trying to get home for Christmas.”
Musab Rashid, 22, who was going to Copenhagen, said: “It’s wrong, it’s childish of them to do this, because it’s affected more than 100,000 people.”
Why the world’s flight paths are such a mess
Karin Sjostrom-Nandris, 49, was heading to Stockholm, said: “We can’t really leave this queue because this seems to be the only place we could possibly find out any information. The queue looks like it’s several hours long, so we could be here for some time.”
Under British law, drones cannot be flown near aircraft or within a kilometre of an airport, or at an altitude of over 400 feet (122 metres). Those breaking the law could face up to five years in prison.

Chaos at Gatwick as ‘drone spotted near the airport’ SHUTS the runway https://t.co/KBeDAbjzjj pic.twitter.com/vsQa1vQyk5
— HabariCloud Today (@HabariCloud) December 20, 2018

Prime Minister Theresa May’s spokesman slammed the perpetrator.
“This behaviour is irresponsible and completely unacceptable,” he told reporters.
“We feel for all the passengers who are facing so much disruption.”
In parliament, members of the upper House of Lords raised the likelihood of a new wave of people getting hold of drones as presents this Christmas.
Gatwick serves more than 228 destinations in 74 countries for 45 million passengers a year.


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Aviation

London’s Gatwick Airport halts all flights as drones cause chaos, stranding tens of thousands of travellers

The arrivals board at Gatwick Airport showing cancelled, diverted and delayed flights as the airport remains closed with incoming flights delayed or diverted to other airports, after drones were spotted over the airfield last night and this morning Thursday Dec. 20, 2018. London's Gatwick Airport remained shut during the busy holiday period Thursday while police and airport officials investigate reports that drones were flying in the area of the airfield. (Thomas Hornall/PA via AP)

Queues of passengers wait at the check-in desks at Gatwick Airport, as the airport remains closed and with incoming flights delayed or diverted to other airports, after drones were spotted over the airfield last night and this morning Thursday Dec. 20, 2018. London's Gatwick Airport remained shut during the busy holiday period Thursday while police and airport officials investigate reports that drones were flying in the area of the airfield. (Thomas Hornall/PA via AP)

Passengers wait in the South Terminal building at Gatwick Airport after drones flying illegally over the airfield forced the closure of the airport. Photo: Reuters

Why the world’s flight paths are such a mess

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World

Europe

Police are hunting the operator of drones that were flown over the eighth-busiest airport in Europe
Gatwick suspended hundreds of flights during one of the heaviest travel times of the year


Police are hunting the operator of drones that were flown over the eighth-busiest airport in Europe. Gatwick Airport has advised all passengers to check the status of their flights, with hundreds of arrivals and departures affected.


Britain

London’s Gatwick Airport halts all flights as drones cause chaos, stranding tens of thousands of travellers

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}Police are hunting the operator of drones that were flown over the eighth-busiest airport in Europe Gatwick suspended hundreds of flights during one of the heaviest travel times of the year

Police are hunting the operator of drones that were flown over the eighth-busiest airport in Europe

Gatwick suspended hundreds of flights during one of the heaviest travel times of the year