All flights were suspended for 20 minutes at Manchester Airport after reports of a ‘drone’ flying in the area.

Landings and takeoffs were first halted at around 11.35am on Monday while police searched for the craft.

After 20 minutes, no drone could be found and services returned to normal shortly before midday.

Runway two was opened to help clear the backlog but airline passengers were warned to expect residual delays.

A Manchester Airport spokesperson said:

“Due to a report of a potential drone sighting in airspace near to the airport, some flights have experienced short delays and a small number of flights have diverted to alternative airports whilst Greater Manchester Police carried out an investigation using their police helicopter.

“Upon inspection, nothing was found.

“As the safety and security of all of our passengers is paramount, operations on Runway One were suspended for 20 minutes.

“Runway Two, which was unaffected, will remain open for an hour so normal traffic flows can resume.”

A drone is an unmanned aircraft which, when used for recreation or to survey an area from the sky, is usually directed via remote control from the ground.

Police helicopter team NPAS Barton tweeted: “Report of drone affecting departing traffic.

“Area search negative. We cannot stress the dangers of flying drones or similar near to any airport.

“Offenders can be subject to arrest for endangering an aircraft.”

Source: Manchester Evening News