This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/feb/29/gatwick-airport-flights-grounded-as-runway-is-closed-after-oil-spillage
The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Gatwick airport reopens after flights grounded due to runway oil spill | Gatwick airport reopens after flights grounded due to runway oil spill |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Gatwick has reopened after an oil spillage on the runway caused disruption to the airport. | Gatwick has reopened after an oil spillage on the runway caused disruption to the airport. |
| No flights were able to land or take off at the West Sussex airport from 10.15am until 11.38am on Tuesday. | No flights were able to land or take off at the West Sussex airport from 10.15am until 11.38am on Tuesday. |
| A Gatwick spokesperson said: “From 11.38am today flights recommenced arrivals and departures from Gatwick airport. The runway closure has caused some arriving flights to be diverted to a range of other airports in the area and there will be delays to some departing flights as a result. | A Gatwick spokesperson said: “From 11.38am today flights recommenced arrivals and departures from Gatwick airport. The runway closure has caused some arriving flights to be diverted to a range of other airports in the area and there will be delays to some departing flights as a result. |
| “Friends and family waiting for passengers should contact the relevant airline for the latest information.” | “Friends and family waiting for passengers should contact the relevant airline for the latest information.” |
| Passengers on diverted flights took to social media to complain about the delay in completing their journeys to Gatwick. | |
| Ryan Brackpool, who was travelling to the UK from Australia, expressed his anger at being informed the plane he was on - which landed at Heathrow - would not take off again for Gatwick for another three hours. | |
| He posted on Twitter: “Come on Gatwick-Airport. Sort this out. We can’t disembark at LHR. But we have to stay for three hours on the plane! Very poor communication!” | |
| Another passenger, Jade Louise Davis, wrote: “Does Emirates really expect an entire plane to sit at Heathrow for three hours before doing a half hour journey back to Gatwick?!? Let us off!!” |