Sussex Police conclude investigation at Gatwick Airport following security scare

A suspect package prompted a major security incident at Gatwick's south terminal, leading to an extensive police investigation and deployment of the bomb disposal unit.

Sussex Police's explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) team responded to "the discovery of a suspected prohibited item in luggage", forcing the terminal closure for over four hours on Friday. Normal operations resumed at around 3pm after police cleared the security alert. After ensuring safety, the force stated: "Officers from the EOD team made the package safe, and the airport has been handed back to its operator."

"Two people who were detained while inquiries were ongoing have subsequently been allowed to continue their journeys." An ongoing heightened police presence is expected to support passengers.

Authorities extended gratitude towards staff and travelers for cooperation during the disruption. The incident commenced following a call to Sussex Police at 8.20am; by 10.30am those yet to pass security were evacuated.

Gatwick Airport notified the public via a statement at 2.44pm that the situation was resolved and the terminal was operational again, though some flight delays and cancellations persisted. It was estimated that 100,000 passengers would pass through Gatwick today.

A flurry of cancellations hit Gatwick Airport's south terminal, with at least 16 departures and 13 arrivals by British Airways being affected. Meanwhile, some flights managed to take off, specifically those that had all passengers cleared through security ahead of the evacuation.

One British Airways flight headed for Orlando took off with a delay of one hour and 49 minutes. Vueling, a Spanish airline, was forced to turn back two of its planes - one from Barcelona and another from Seville - to their originating airports.

Another delayed departure saw a Norwegian aircraft to Bergen leave two hours and seven minutes behind schedule. Contrastingly, operations at the north terminal proceeded without interruption.

Nejadeen Braham, 35, a nurse based on the Isle of Man, encountered significant disruptions while planning to travel to Jamaica to reunite with her children. She expressed her distress to the PA news agency outside the south terminal: "I couldn’t get in the airport. I saw everybody coming (out) from one direction."

She continued, detailing her thwarted efforts to commence her journey: "I was supposed to go inside, drop my bags and go through security. When I got here I saw everybody coming down. There were no proper updates. I’m very frustrated."

To compound the situation further, train services at Gatwick were also put on hold, as the station is integrated with the south terminal.

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