Alicante airport drone chaos as Ryanair, easyJet and Jet2 flights from UK diverted

Spanish officials have confirmed a total of five flights packed with UK holidaymakers had to be diverted to other destinations after a mystery drone was spotted near Alicante Airport.

Airport authority AENA suspended operations just before 9pm last night following the drone sighting. Flights were not allowed to depart or arrive. Normal activity wasn't resumed until around 11pm last night. Overnight it was confirmed ten international flights bound for the Costa Blanca had to be diverted to nearby airports, seven to Valencia, one to Murcia, one to Barcelona and one to Palma in Majorca. Five were flights coming from the UK - three Ryanair planes which had taken off from Manchester, London Stansted and Newcastle; an easyJet flight from Liverpool and a Jet2 flight from Manchester. The drone alert also caused delays for holidaymakers on outbound flights. Local reports said around 1,000 travellers had been directly affected. Police were continuing to investigate today to try to identify the drone operator. They have reportedly sent a specialist aerial unit to try and locate the drones, which are believed to be in the Torrellano area.

A spokesperson for Alicante-Elche Airport said: "For now, there is no further information about it. Here in the area, nothing can be seen, but they need to ensure it is safe to operate again."

Earlier this month Palma Airport in Majorca was thrown into chaos after a mystery drone was spotted near the runways. FlightRadar24 reported: "Operations at Palma de Mallorca Airport are currently suspended because of a drone in the airspace. Last landing was at 18:58 local time (5.58pm UK time). Several flights are diverting to other airports."

It is understood air crew on at least six planes travelling to and from Majorca Airport reported seeing what they believed to be a drone leading to the emergency measures being introduced. And it follows many airports in Europe have faced disruption from drones, with claims that Russia has been behind some of the interference.

And in late September flights were also diverted from Fuerteventura airport after a drone sighting, with reports at the time saying at least three planes packed with holidaymakers were turned away from the island airport.

Police are still trying to identify the person responsible for the problems in Majorca. Recent reports said they could face a fine of up to £3.9 million.

The highest fine could be applied if the drone operator turned out to be a professional like a pilot or aeronautical engineer. If the person turned out to be a non-professional, the likely fine would be around the £195,000 mark.