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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/dec/19/gatwick-flights-halted-after-drone-sighting
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| Theresa May tries to resolve Gatwick airport drones problem | |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Theresa May has said the government is working with Gatwick to try to resolve the impasse at the airport, which has been closed for more than 12 hours because of drones. | |
| The airport remains closed after what police and the airport described as a deliberate attempt to disrupt flights. Tens of thousands of travellers have been affected and the prime minister said she felt for them, but the government was doing what it could. May also defended the steps already taken to prevent misuse of drones. | |
| “I feel for all those passengers whose travel plans have been disrupted by this drone activity and the action that has had to be taken in response to it,” she said. “At this particular time of year this is particularly difficult for people. | |
| “We have already passed legislation in relation to the use of drones. As it has been made clear, the activity we have seen is illegal and those who are caught endangering aircraft can face up to five years in prison. And we’re consulting on further aspects of this, including further police powers. | |
| “We will continue to work with the Gatwick authorities in order to bring this to a close such that people will be able to get on to the travel that they were expecting over the Christmas.” | |
| Chris Woodroofe, Gatwick’s chief operating officer, said on Thursday afternoon there had been another drone sighting between 11am and 12pm, which meant it was impossible to say when the airport would reopen. | |
| He told BBC News: “There are 110,000 passengers due to fly today, and the vast majority of those will see cancellations and disruption. We have had within the last hour another drone sighting so at this stage we are not open and I cannot tell you what time we will open. | He told BBC News: “There are 110,000 passengers due to fly today, and the vast majority of those will see cancellations and disruption. We have had within the last hour another drone sighting so at this stage we are not open and I cannot tell you what time we will open. |
| “It was on the airport, seen by the police and corroborated. So having seen that drone that close to the runway it was unsafe to reopen. | “It was on the airport, seen by the police and corroborated. So having seen that drone that close to the runway it was unsafe to reopen. |
| “Realistically if we do reopen today, what the airlines will seek to do is deal with the passengers who are on site and to prepare for an operation tomorrow morning where we repatriate passengers who are in the wrong place. It’s realistically going to take several days to recover.” | |
| Earlier, he said the drones could not be shot down because of the risk posed by stray bullets. | Earlier, he said the drones could not be shot down because of the risk posed by stray bullets. |
| How dangerous are drones to aircraft? | How dangerous are drones to aircraft? |
| Officers from Surrey and Sussex police forces have been scouring the perimeter to try to catch the operators of two drones, which were first spotted at 9pm on Wednesday night, leading to flights being suspended. Sussex police said there was no indication that the ongoing incident was terrorism-related. | |
| Updating the House of Lords on events, the transport minister Elizabeth Sugg revealed the scale of the response. “Sussex police are in the lead and have officers on the ground. They are doing everything they can to locate drone and its operators,” she said. “All relevant parts of government including the Department for Transport, Home Office and the Ministry of Defence, are involved in the response.” | |
| The drones disappeared and reappeared over the runway area from 9pm until 3am, when the runway was reopened. But 45 minutes later they reappeared again. | |
| Justin Burtenshaw, Gatwick airport’s policing commander who was in charge of trying to catch the operators of the drones, told the BBC it was a painstaking process because the bigger the drone the further away the operator could be. “Each time we believe we get close to the operator, the drone disappears,” he said. “When we look to reopen the airfield, the drone reappears, so I’m absolutely convinced it is a deliberate act to disrupt Gatwick airport.” | |
| Some people reported being left on aircraft for several hours while they waited to find out what was going on. Gatwick advised anyone flying from the airport, or collecting someone, to check the status of their flight. EasyJet advised its passengers not to travel to the airport if their flights had been cancelled. | |
| How have you been affected by the delay at Gatwick airport? | How have you been affected by the delay at Gatwick airport? |
| Arthur Serbejs, 22, and Domante Balciuniate, 21, factory workers from Hastings, sat on the floor by a prayer room on Thursday morning, approaching their 16th hour of waiting for a flight to Barcelona. | |
| “We came about 6pm yesterday, and we’re going to be here until like 7pm,” Serbejs said. “At 9pm yesterday we were on the plane for four hours – they turned the lights off and everything like it was going to take off.” | “We came about 6pm yesterday, and we’re going to be here until like 7pm,” Serbejs said. “At 9pm yesterday we were on the plane for four hours – they turned the lights off and everything like it was going to take off.” |
| “But we were still sitting there,” Balciuniate added. Serbejs said he had fallen asleep while the plane sat on the airport apron, hoping to wake up in Spain, “and I woke up and we hadn’t moved”. | |
| Eventually they were taken off the flight, and offered a hotel in Brighton, which they declined as they live nearby. They were told they would get an email with a ticket for another flight, but none came. “We stood in line for three hours for a 30-second conversation saying: ‘Your flight has already been transferred hours ago,’ but we didn’t know about it,” Serbejs said. | |
| “It’s crazy, it’s my worst airport experience.” | “It’s crazy, it’s my worst airport experience.” |
| “We don’t even expect to go to Barcelona any more,” Balciuniate said. “Maybe there’s another drone up there – but we have hope. There’s a prayer room over there, we were thinking about going.” | |
| Mamosta Abdulla said he was on an Iraq-bound flight on Wednesday evening before getting stuck on the tarmac for four hours. He would miss his father’s memorial service, he said. | Mamosta Abdulla said he was on an Iraq-bound flight on Wednesday evening before getting stuck on the tarmac for four hours. He would miss his father’s memorial service, he said. |
| “We got here at 6pm and should have flown at 9.10pm, but we were stuck four hours on the plane with a crying baby, the child was disabled, and everyone was sweating because it was so hot in there,” he said. | |
| Passengers were given a voucher for food, he added, but were left to sleep “in a freezing place on uncomfortable chairs”. | Passengers were given a voucher for food, he added, but were left to sleep “in a freezing place on uncomfortable chairs”. |
| “We are in Iraq with bombs going off nearby and the plane still lands. But here some drones have shut down the airport.” | “We are in Iraq with bombs going off nearby and the plane still lands. But here some drones have shut down the airport.” |
| pic.twitter.com/RrdWpNk1kY | pic.twitter.com/RrdWpNk1kY |
| There was criticism from opposition parties as well as unions representing pilots and engineers that the rules on drones needed to be toughened up and enforced. | |
| The British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa) said the government should consider creating a larger no-fly zone around airports. | The British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa) said the government should consider creating a larger no-fly zone around airports. |
| Labour said the government has been too slow to address safety concerns about drones and should fast-track laws to protect against their misuse and create a drone exclusion zone around airports. The Lib Dems also called for more stringent rules. | |
| Lady Sugg said: “We absolutely need to make sure that we introduce new laws to ensure that drones are used safely and responsibly. Earlier this year we brought in a law that makes it illegal to fly within a kilometre of an airport and above 400ft. | |
| “We are also introducing a registration system, which will include a mandatory safety check before you are able to fly your drone.” | “We are also introducing a registration system, which will include a mandatory safety check before you are able to fly your drone.” |
| She added that research was being carried out into counter-drone technology. | |
| An airport spokeswoman said that airlines were working to provide affected passengers with hotel accommodation, or transport for those whose flights were diverted. | |
| Luton, Heathrow, Stansted and Manchester were among the airports which accepted diverted flights. Passengers were also sent as far as Amsterdam and Paris. | |
| Gatwick airport | Gatwick airport |
| Air transport | Air transport |
| Transport | Transport |
| Drones (non-military) | Drones (non-military) |
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