THOUSANDS OF HOLIDAYS IN TURMOIL AS GATWICK SUSPENDS ALL FLIGHTS
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All flights were temporarily suspended at Gatwick Airport this afternoon after a British Airways flight was forced to an emergency stop on the runway.
The Boeing 777 jet was seen blocking all other flights from taking off on the runway, sparking travel chaos for thousands of British holidaymakers.
Video footage taken from passengers onboard the flight showed fire engines making its way over to the stationary vehicle, with travellers being told take-off had been 'aborted'.
Flight G-VIIT BA2279 was due to depart to Vancouver this afternoon before it was forced to do a 'high-speed emergency stop'.
A statement from the airport said the plane had been abandoned 'due to the departing aircraft having hot breaks'.
According to travel expert Simon Calder at least 12 flights were diverted including an Emirates A380 flight from Dubai that was instead forced to land in Brussels.
It is unknown how many flights in total have been affected on what is the busiest aviation day of the year so far.
The airport's runway was forced to close following a 'rejected take-off', according to flight tracking website Flightradar24. The website reported the closure at 12.53pm reopening at 1.14pm.
'Safety is our top priority and the dedicated airport fire service swiftly attended to support the aircraft,' a spokesperson added. 'A number of flights were diverted. The runway is now open and operating as normal.'
Read more 2024-06-28T13:02:43Z dg43tfdfdgfd
