Flights briefly grounded at Frankfurt after drone sighted
March 2, 2020
German air traffic control briefly grounded flights at Frankfurt Airport on Monday after a drone was spotted in the area.
"The state and federal police are working together to provide information and avert danger," Deutsche Flugsicherung, Germany's air traffic control, tweeted late Monday morning.
Read more: German airports unprotected against drones
Several flights were canceled or rerouted, including a plane carrying state premier of North Rhine-Westphalia, Armin Laschet, who was returning from a visit in Israel.
About two hours later the airport was reopened to flights.
A pilot reported seeing a drone over the southern part of the airport at about 11:15 a.m. Police searched the area with the support of a helicopter.
In December 2018, Britain's Gatwick airport was shut down for several days and hundreds of flights were cancelled due to repeated drone sightings.
ed,stb/aw (Reuters, dpa, AP)