Today’s suspension of flights to and from London’s Gatwick Airport sparked warnings from the airport and the U.K. Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) and calls for tougher laws from organizations representing airlines and pilots.
All flights to and from Gatwick were suspended around 2100 local time Wednesday until at least 1600 local time today after drones were reported repeatedly flying over the airfield, airport officials said, describing the presence of the drones as “what appears to be a deliberate attempt to disrupt flights.”
Published reports quoted airport officials as saying that the closure affected 10,000 would-be passengers overnight Wednesday and could affect up to 110,000 today, and that Gatwick would not be reopened “until it was safe to do so.” In a news release dated Dec. 17, the Gatwick Airport Press Office said 2.9 million passengers were expected to trave…
