Police at Manchester Airport issue Christmas warning

Police at Manchester Airport have warned that drones which may have been gifted at Christmas can't be flown within five kilometres of the airfield.

So-called 'Flight Restriction Zones' are in force around airports across the country, including at Manchester Airport and Manchester Barton Aerodrome, to protect the safety of planes taking off and landing.

With the boom in the popularity of drones, airports have seen severe disruption in the last few years, particularly at Gatwick Airport which cancelled or diverted around 1,000 flights between December 19-21 2018 because of drone reports. In May, in-coming flights were paused for an hour because of reports of drones near the airfield.

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In a post on GMP's Manchester Airport Facebook page, the force reminded followers about a 'restriction zone' which prohibits the flying of potentially dangerous unmanned craft near the airport, and shared a video which showed the restricted air space.

It said: "We hope you are having a great Christmas. If you are lucky enough to have been given a drone please be aware there is a Flight Restriction Zone of 5 KM around Manchester Airport. You are not permitted to fly within this without authority of the airport."

The post directed people to Government guidance on drones which said: "In 2016 there were over 50 reports from pilots of commercial airliners that their aircraft had almost hit a drone. Military aviation is not immune, there have been near misses with Chinooks at Benson and Odiham, likewise for fixed wing aircraft at Cranwell, and in 2016 a Navy Lynx at 2000ft missed a drone