Alicante airport shut down for two hours due to drone
Around 1,000 passengers were affected with flights diverted to Murcia and other airports
Alicante-Elche Airport was thrown into complete chaos on Monday October 27 when a drone was spotted flying above the terminal shortly before 9pm. Because of the safety risk this posed, airport authorities had no choice but to ground all flights and suspend arrivals for two full hours.
During the temporary closure, ten international flights had to be diverted to other nearby airports. Seven were rerouted to Valencia, one to Murcia, one to Barcelona and one to Palma de Mallorca. In total, around 1,000 passengers were affected by this incident.
As required by protocol, the management of Miguel Hernández Airport alerted the Guardia Civil as soon as the drone appeared above the runway. At the same time, the National Police deployed its Aerial Means Unit specialists to the Torrellano area, near the airport, to attempt to locate and identify the device.
The officers used the "AeroScope" system, a technology capable of detecting, tracking and neutralising unauthorised drones in restricted airspace.
Drone intrusion has become a real headache for airport authorities and just a week ago, a similar incident occurred in Palma de Mallorca and shortly before that, in the Canary Islands. Interference of this type results in significant losses for airlines and the perpetrator or perpetrators face huge fines as a result.
According to Aena, during the two-hour shut-down, the following flights had to be diverted:
- TRA6145 (Transavia) – from Amsterdam-Schiphol (AMS)
- RYR4696 (Ryanair) – from Lanzarote (ACE)
- EXS881 (Jet2.com) – from Manchester (MAN)
- RYR6366 (Ryanair) – from Krakow (KRK)
- EZY3357 (easyJet UK) – from Liverpool (LPL)
- RYR4027 (Ryanair) – from Manchester (MAN)
- RYR6647 (Ryanair) – from London Stansted (STN)
- RYR4080 (Ryanair) – from Newcastle (NCL)
- RYR2663 (Ryanair) – from Frankfurt-Hahn (HHN)
- VY8322 (Vueling) – from Paris-Orly (ORY)
Delays were also reported on international departures, including flights to Amsterdam (TRA6146), Liverpool (EZY3358), Manchester (RYR4028) and London Stansted (RYR6646).
Risk and penalties for using drones
The presence of drones in restricted areas, such as the vicinity of airports, requires the immediate closure of air traffic until any risk to landing or take-off manoeuvrers can be eliminated.
According to the Spanish National Aviation Safety Agency (AESA), flying a drone without authorisation in controlled airspace constitutes a very serious offence, punishable by fines of up to €225,000 and even criminal liability.
Image: Flight Radar
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