As if the holiday travel isn’t chaotic enough, passengers planning to travel in or out of London Gatwick got a rude surprise this week. Two drones were flying near the major airport around 9 pm local time on Wednesday night, according to a report by NPR, causing airport officials to close down operations. Around 3 am, the airport opened back up only to shut down again following additional drone sightings. Gatwick’s COO Chris Woodroofe told BBC News that a drone was seen multiple times and law enforcement was searching for the drone operator. The latest airport update announced that there will be no operations until at least 7 pm local time.
Drone Threat Shuts Down London Airport
Key Takeaways:
- London Gatwick Airport was forced to shut down multiple times due to repeated drone sightings near its runways, causing severe disruption.
- Tens of thousands of holiday passengers were affected, with flights diverted and airport operations suspended for an extended period.
- The incident, while not suspected terrorism, underscores the significant safety and operational risks posed by unauthorized drone activity near airports, which is illegal in the UK and carries severe penalties.
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