London's Heathrow airport briefly suspends departures over drone sighting

(Image credit: Jack Taylor / Getty Images)

published 8 January 2019

Another London airport just had to suspend flights due to a possible drone in the area.

Departures at London's Heathrow airport were grounded Tuesday because of a drone sighting, BBC News reports. The airport said on Twitter that this step was taken "as a precautionary measure" and that it was "working closely with the Met Police to prevent any threat to operational safety." Luckily for passengers, flights resumed about an hour later, reports The Telegraph.

Just a few weeks ago, London's Gatwick airport was shut down several times over the course of three days when multiple drones were spotted flying near the runway, causing chaos and affecting more than 100,000 passengers right before the holidays as planes were forced to remain grounded to avoid colliding with the devices. No one was charged in the incident, although two suspects were briefly arrested before being released by police, The Guardian reports. The Sydney Morning Herald reported Monday that Britain would be extending the drone exclusion area around airports and testing counter-drone technology in response.

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Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.

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