Flights at Gatwick suspended again due to suspected drone sighting

The airport had to be closed yesterday as a precaution after a number of drones were flown over the airport

21 December 2018, 7:18pm

1 min read

Gatwick airport's runway has been closed again after another drone were spotted flying over it

Flights to and from Gatwick airport were again suspended on Friday due to a new “suspected drone sighting” but opened shortly afterwards.

A spokesperson for the airport said that airfield movements were suspendas authorities investigated the sighting.

"This was a precautionary measure as safety remains our main priority. The military measures we have in place at the airport have provided us with reassurance necessary that it is safe to re-open our airfield.”

The sighting is reported to have occurred at 5.10pm GMT. Sussex police are working to track down the drone’s operator.

The runway was first closed just after 9pm GMT on Wednesday when two drones were spotted flying over the perimeter fence and into the aerodrome.

It was briefly reopened at 3am GMT on Thursday but was closed again about 45 minutes later due to further sightings.

The closure resulted in thousands of passengers remaining stranded at the airport as police continued their search for the operators of the drone.