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Heathrow airport drone investigated by police

Scotland Yard said a ‘full criminal investigation’ had been launched after sightings of another drone temporarily halted flights at Heathrow airport.

Departures from the west London airport were suspended for about an hour on 8 January, only a few weeks after thousands of passengers were caught up in disruption at Gatwick Airport following reports of drone sightings.

The airport has stated that ‘business was back to normal’, but has confirmed that the military is helping the Metropolitan Police look into the incident.

The Met's Commander Stuart Cundy said: “We are carrying out extensive searches around the Heathrow area to identify any people who may be responsible for the operation of the drone.

"The illegal operation of drones at an airfield is extremely dangerous. It is an offence to endanger the safety of an aircraft; anyone found guilty of this offence could face a life sentence.

"We are deploying significant resources - both in terms of officers and equipment - to monitor the airspace around Heathrow and to quickly detect and disrupt any illegal drone activity; some of which are as a result of learning from the incidents at Gatwick."

It was recently announced that police would be given new powers to tackle the illegal use of drones.

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