Gatwick Gets Stuck in a Drone‑driven Drama
Brits flew out of shape after three days of sky‑high turbulence at London Gatwick. Between Wednesday and Friday, about 140,000 travellers were stuck on the tarmac when the airport was shut down by a swarm of alleged drones.
What Happened?
- A broken drone was found near the airport perimeter and is now under forensic scrutiny.
- Police say they’re still not sure if that wreckage actually flew over the runway.
- In the meantime, the airport has been on the back foot, pausing flights while investigators sniff around.
Suspects Who Got a Quick Release
Friday night the police nabbed a 47‑year‑old man and a 54‑year‑old woman from Crawley – the chilli‑parking town just outside Gatwick. They were released without charge on Sunday after a “tip‑off.”
“Both people have fully co‑operated with our enquiries, and I am satisfied that they are no longer suspects in the drone incidents at Gatwick,” declared Sussex Police detective chief superintendent Jason Tingley.
On the front page of Sunday’s tabloids, the couple became the headline’s laughing stock with captions like “Are these the folks who ruined Christmas?”
Yet, the man is actually a hobbyist helicopter aficionado, and a coworker swore he was at his desk the whole time. “He was still at work,” the boss claimed. That’s before the court‑room meets the chaos.
Why It Matters
Drones can kill. They’re not just cute toys—they can crash into a plane’s guts or get sucked into engines, where a tiny lithium battery can ignite a sky‑fire. For this reason, British law bars anyone from flying a drone within 1 km of an airfield, or at heights over 400 ft.
Violation can land you in a five‑year sentence behind bars.
Rewards and Calls for Action
The airport is offering a £50,000 reward (USD 63,000; €56,000) for info that leads to a conviction. In the meantime, the Labour Party is demanding an independent inquiry, accusing the government of “failing to act” on the risk drones pose. A Department for Transport spokesman, however, called those claims “a nonsense and gross misrepresentation.”
Gatwick’s Mail‑and‑Hug Approach
Gatwick insists the runway is open and the planes are scheduled to fly, but as usual, passengers should expect some delays and cancellations. The airport’s official message goes like this:
“Safety is Gatwick’s top priority, and we are grateful for passengers’ continued patience as we work to get them to their final destination in time for Christmas.”
Even though planes were air‑hanging with a drone‑creature, the message is pretty calm. The only crisis left is that travelers must survive a “flight of 140,000 souls” disrupted by a mysterious hover‑craft, a puzzle that detective sirens are still solving.
