Drone sightings are seriously disrupting air traffic at London Gatwick

Yesterday evening (20 December), two drones were spotted flying around London Gatwick Airport. Airport authorities decided to close down the airfield between 21:00 (UTC) and 03:01. Another drone sighting, however, has forced the runway to be closed again this morning at 03:45. Sussex Police and the airport are continuing to investigate the sighting.

At 10:00, the airport is still closed for air traffic, the airport will provide an update when they have suitable reassurance that it is appropriate to reopen the runway. A forum topic has been created to discuss about the incidents.

Several aircraft were forced to divert to nearby airports, others to airports as far as Cardiff, Paris and Amsterdam, while aircraft have also been unable to depart from Gatwick. “The airlines are working to provide affected passengers with hotel accommodation or transport passengers landing at other airports to Gatwick by other means, and Gatwick are looking after passengers in our terminals,” the airport said in a statement.

Passengers have been advised to check the status of their flight and to directly contact the airline. “We apologise to any affected passengers for this inconvenience but the safety of our passengers and all staff is our foremost priority.”