London’s Heathrow Airport Briefly Stops Departures After Drone Sighting
This post contains references to products from one or more of our advertisers. We may receive compensation when you click on links to those products. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. For an explanation of our Advertising Policy, visit this page.
London’s Heathrow airport (LHR) has had to halt departures for about 30 minutes Tuesday afternoon following the sighting of a drone. The disruption is occurring less than a month after London’s Gatwick airport was closed multiple times following the sighting of drones above the airfield. Hundreds of thousands of travellers were affected, with all flights cancelled for over 24 hours on December 21.
On an average day, there are 1,400 movements, or takeoffs and landings, from Heathrow, Europe’s busiest airport.
A Heathrow spokeswoman told the BBC that the airport was working with police to “prevent any threat to operational safety”.
“As a precautionary measure, we have stopped departures while we investigate,” she said. “We apologise to passengers for any inconvenience this may cause.”
A screen grab from flight tracking site Flightradar24 taken after flights resumed shows planes with British Airways, American Airlines and Swiss departing from LHR.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Featured image of Heathrow by In Pictures Ltd./Corbis via Getty Images
WELCOME OFFER: 60,000 Points
TPG'S BONUS VALUATION*: $1,200
CARD HIGHLIGHTS: 2X points on all travel and dining, points transferrable to over a dozen travel partners
*Bonus value is an estimated value calculated by TPG and not the card issuer. View our latest valuations here.
- Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®
- 2X points on travel and dining at restaurants worldwide & 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.
- Get 25% more value when you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards. For example, 60,000 points are worth $750 toward travel
Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
Disclaimer: The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser’s responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.