‘Missing’ Plane Sparks Air Alert

THOUSANDS of passengers were delayed when a mid-air drama left flights grounded at Birmingham International Airport.

The airport was declared a no-fly zone when a plane bound for Coventry Airport lost radio control with air traffic controllers at 8pm yesterday.

Flights to and from Birmingham were suspended as a safety precaution to keep the skies clear. They only resumed 20 minutes later when the plane was believed to have touched down safely at Coventry. A Birmingham Airport spokesman said the incident had only a minimal impact on operations. “We apologise to anyone who was inconvenienced but we hope they will understand the reasons,” he said. “It’s something that didn’t affect us other than to cause minor delays. There were no diversions and it had only a minimal effect at Birmingham.”

German firm Tui operates passenger services from Coventry but no details of the flight or the onboard problem were immediately available