Bomb shuts down London airport

Flights from London City Airport, shown here last October, were closed Monday due to an unexploded World War II bomb.

Flights in and out of London’s City Airport were suspended on Monday after a bomb was found in the river Thames.

Before jumping to any conclusions about the bomb, it is important here to point out that the weapon was, in fact, an unexploded World War II bomb.

Nevertheless, a 200-metre exclusion zone was set up around the bomb, which was located at George V Dock of the Thames.

According to the BBC, the Royal Navy said the bomb would be exploded underwater overnight and the airport should reopen on Tuesday.

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The London City Airport is the city’s fifth-biggest and the most central to the metropolis.

Robert Sinclair, CEO of London City Airport said: “The airport is cooperating fully with the Met Police and Royal Navy and working hard to safely remove the device and resolve the situation as quickly as possible.”

The closure of the airport has lead to the cancellation of more than 100 departures, affecting 16,000 passengers.

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British Airways released a statement on the issue, explaining the airline would be offering alternatives to customers.

“We are rebooking customers due to travel today onto alternative flights or offering refunds for those who no longer wish to travel.”

CityJet has also rerouted its flights to take off from the London Southend airport, while Italy’s Alitalia moved flights to London’s Stansted airport.

 

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