Departures at Heathrow Airport were temporarily suspended on Tuesday evening after a suspected drone sighting, police confirmed. The Metropolitan Police received reports of a drone near the airport at around 17:05 GMT, prompting a precautionary halt to flights that lasted approximately one hour.
A Heathrow spokeswoman described the suspension as a precautionary measure to prevent any threat to operational safety. The airport worked with Air Traffic Control and the Metropolitan Police to manage the incident. Flights resumed after police confirmed the situation was under control.
The incident follows major disruption at Gatwick Airport last month, where drone sightings led to the cancellation of around 1,000 flights over three days, affecting more than 140,000 passengers. Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said he was in contact with Heathrow and had spoken to the home secretary and defence secretary about the sighting.
BBC cameraman Martin Roberts reported seeing a drone near the Harmondsworth area while driving on the M25. He described a stationary object with flashing red and green lights at about 300 feet, visible for four to five minutes. Passengers on affected flights expressed frustration, with some describing cold conditions and delays.
Travel expert Simon Calder warned of knock-on effects, as arriving flights faced gate availability issues due to the temporary halt. Heathrow has confirmed it will invest in anti-drone systems, following Gatwick's £5 million expenditure on similar measures.
