The take-off of a British Airways flight had to be aborted (Picture: GETTY/Flightradar24)
There are fears of major disruption at Gatwick Airport as planes were unable to take off or land.
Plane tracking data showed several aircraft being held both in the airspace near to Gatwick and above the English Channel.
It’s thought the take-off of a British Airways flight to Vancouver, Canada had to be aborted, according to flight tracking data.
The airline has now confirmed that take-off had to be cancelled due to a ‘technical issue’, but the runway is now open and running as normal.
One passenger on another flight says a plane has been sat on the runway blocking others from taking off or landing.
They told ITV News: ‘Just as we were about to roll onto the runway for take-off, the pilot announced another aircraft was stuck on and blocking the runway and that they didn’t know how long it would take to clear.
‘We must be knocking on for an hour now. The plane has now been towed from the runway and our engines are back up and running.
‘Pilot said “it’s going to be a bit of a scrum to see who gets onto the runway first”.’
A spokesperson for British Airways said: ‘Our pilots took the precautionary decision to cancel take-off due to a technical issue.
‘Safety is always our top priority and we apologise to customers for the inconvenience caused.’
A London Gatwick spokesperson said: ‘The main runway was closed for a short time today due to a departing aircraft having hot brakes.
‘Safety is our top priority and the dedicated airport fire service swiftly attended to support the aircraft.
‘A number of flights were diverted. The runway is now open and operating as normal.’
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