Gatwick has become my second home as I report on the drone that held up an entire airport

After talking to dozens of upset, confused and increasingly angry passengers, I am not surprised at extreme reactions, but I think our view of this unhappy episode may change

Passengers wait in the South Terminal building at London Gatwick Airport after flights resumed. (Getty Images)

Costa Coffee in the Arrivals area of Gatwick airport has been my second home for the past few days. Starting on Wednesday evening, unauthorised drone activity brought the world’s busiest runway to a halt for 33 hours, triggering the cancellation of 1,000 flights and stranding upwards of 150,000 passengers.

I have spent much of the days before Christmas explaining the bountiful rights that a traveller has when their flight from Gatwick is grounded for any reason: acts of God or malicious drone, air-traffic control strike or atrocious weather.

But one response to a tweet on the subject was: “You should have the right to take a baseball bat to the scum who caused all the trouble in the first place.”

After talking to dozens of upset, confused and increasingly angry passengers, I am not surprised at such an extreme reaction. But while travellers seethe with understandable frustration about how some malicious mischief with a technological toy can cause such misery, I think that our view of this unhappy episode may change.

It’s all down to aviation security. The key changes in the regime for trying to keep the travelling public safe from malice have followed on from tragedies.

Friday 21 December was the 30th anniversary of the Lockerbie disaster, in which 270 people died. The families of the victims are enduring another profoundly sad Christmas. Immediately after the Pan Am jumbo jet was bombed out of the sky by a device checked in by someone who didn’t board the flight, the laxity which allowed passengers to travel independently of their bags ended.

The terrible events of 9/11 also involved exploiting a loophole in how aviation security works. The hijackers on that awful day breezed through airport security, because at the time “boxcutter” blades capable of killing were allowed through checks.

The Gatwick closure highlighted the ease with which the unauthorised use of drones could intrude upon sensitive airspace and cause mayhem. Whoever perpetrated it caused much stress and sadness but no physical harm. Every airport in the UK and worldwide is now aware of the possible threats, and can start to implement mitigation. Far better that this should happen without any loss of life.

Now back to the Costa counter. The usual, please.

Yours,

Simon Calder

Travel correspondent