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Heathrow airport: Drone sighting halts departures
25 minutes ago
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Related TopicsGatwick drone shutdown
Heathrow airportImage copyrightPA
Departures at Heathrow were temporarily stopped after a drone was reported to have been sighted.
Flights from the west London airport resumed about an hour after police said a drone had been seen.
A Heathrow spokeswoman had said it was a "precautionary measure" to "prevent any threat to operational safety".
It comes after last month's disruption at Gatwick Airport which saw thousands of people stranded when drones were sighted.
How can a drone cause so much chaos?
New powers to tackle illegal drone use
The spokeswoman said Heathrow was working with Air Traffic Control and the Metropolitan Police following the incident.
"We continue to monitor this situation and apologise to any passengers that were affected by this disruption," she said.
British Airways aircraft on the tarmac at HeathrowImage copyrightREUTERS
Image caption
British Airways aircraft were among those sitting on the tarmac waiting to depart
The Metropolitan Police said they received reports of a drone sighting near Heathrow at about 17:05 GMT.
Before the confirmation that flights had resumed, Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said he was in contact with the airport about the drone sighting, and had spoken to the home secretary and defence secretary.
BBC cameraman Martin Roberts said he was driving on the M25 past Heathrow airport at about 17:45 GMT when he saw what he believes was a drone.
"I could see, I'd say around 300 feet up, very bright, stationary flashing red and green lights, over the Harmondsworth area," he said.
"I could tell it was a drone - these things have got quite distinctive lights - not a helicopter.
"The lights were very close together. It was a very clear night and the object was stationary, it was turning very, very slightly. I could see it very clearly, I'd say for about four to five minutes."
Heathrow airport
25 minutes ago
Share this with Facebook Share this with Messenger Share this with Twitter Share this with Email Share
Related TopicsGatwick drone shutdown
Heathrow airportImage copyrightPA
Departures at Heathrow were temporarily stopped after a drone was reported to have been sighted.
Flights from the west London airport resumed about an hour after police said a drone had been seen.
A Heathrow spokeswoman had said it was a "precautionary measure" to "prevent any threat to operational safety".
It comes after last month's disruption at Gatwick Airport which saw thousands of people stranded when drones were sighted.
How can a drone cause so much chaos?
New powers to tackle illegal drone use
The spokeswoman said Heathrow was working with Air Traffic Control and the Metropolitan Police following the incident.
"We continue to monitor this situation and apologise to any passengers that were affected by this disruption," she said.
British Airways aircraft on the tarmac at HeathrowImage copyrightREUTERS
Image caption
British Airways aircraft were among those sitting on the tarmac waiting to depart
The Metropolitan Police said they received reports of a drone sighting near Heathrow at about 17:05 GMT.
Before the confirmation that flights had resumed, Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said he was in contact with the airport about the drone sighting, and had spoken to the home secretary and defence secretary.
BBC cameraman Martin Roberts said he was driving on the M25 past Heathrow airport at about 17:45 GMT when he saw what he believes was a drone.
"I could see, I'd say around 300 feet up, very bright, stationary flashing red and green lights, over the Harmondsworth area," he said.
"I could tell it was a drone - these things have got quite distinctive lights - not a helicopter.
"The lights were very close together. It was a very clear night and the object was stationary, it was turning very, very slightly. I could see it very clearly, I'd say for about four to five minutes."
Heathrow airport