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Hanover airport shut after car driven near runway | Hanover airport shut after car driven near runway |
(35 minutes later) | |
Hanover Airport closed to flights for several hours on Saturday after a man drove a car through a fence onto the tarmac. | |
The incident happened at around 15:40 local time (14:40 GMT). | The incident happened at around 15:40 local time (14:40 GMT). |
Hanover police said officials were able to stop the car, "overpower" the driver and take him into custody. | |
Flights in and out were suspended during their investigation, but resumed on Saturday evening after the man's vehicle was declared safe. | |
The incident came just over a week after German police announced they were tightening airport security over terrorism fears. | |
Police have said there was no indication that Saturday's incident was terror-related, and are reportedly investigating whether the man was under the influence of drugs. | |
The driver, who has not been named, is said to have driven through a perimeter fence onto the apron area of tarmac, where flights typically park and unload. | |
Images from the airport showed a vehicle and security response close to an Aegean Airlines aircraft. | |
The car is reported to have had Polish number plates, but no information about the man's nationality is known. | |
Inbound planes were diverted to nearby locations during the closure. | |
Police said flights resumed just after 20:00 (21:00 GMT) after the vehicle was searched and no danger found. | |
Hanover Airport is located 11km (6 miles) from the city centre. Millions of people fly through it every year, but it is not considered one of Germany's major hubs. | Hanover Airport is located 11km (6 miles) from the city centre. Millions of people fly through it every year, but it is not considered one of Germany's major hubs. |