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Second night of drone disruption at Jersey Airport

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This story was published by BBC UK on November 1, 2026 and curated on Africa Front.

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November 1, 2026

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Second night of drone disruption at Jersey Airport

Published1 November 2026, 01:52 GMT

People at Jersey Airport have said they are frustrated and angry that "unauthorised drone" activity caused more flight cancellations for a second night in a row.

At 20:05 on Saturday, Jersey Airport said it was "experiencing disruption.... affecting inbound flights as a result of further drone activity in the vicinity of the airfield".

States of Jersey Police are investigating the incidents and has appealed to anyone with information about who is responsible to come forward.

The Government of Jersey said it was working on arrangements to reduce the risk of further disruption and minimise the impact on passengers in the event of further drone activity on Sunday evening.

Jersey RFC said their team's flight home from Southampton had been cancelled and it would cost the club "thousands and thousands of pounds", including unforeseen hotel costs.

Also caught in the chaos was Iselin Jones, director of Jersey's The Moorings Hotel, whose flight home from Madeira was diverted to Paris.

Pacific Basirwe was waiting for his wife and young son to fly in from London Heathrow when he heard the news.

He said: "It's annoying, this should be regulated, and the people doing those things should be prosecuted.

"It's been two days in a row now… If there is no further action, they will keep doing it, which is not good."

Insp Rob McCallum said it was believed "two or three" drones had entered the restricted airspace, but they were not thought to be linked to terrorism.

The Chief Minister of Jersey, Senator Lyndon Farnham, said operating a drone close to an airport was "not a prank or a harmless hobby".

"To those responsible, the message is clear: if you are identified, you should expect to face the full consequences of the law."

'Utmost seriousness'

He added: "The government and our operational partners are treating these incidents with the utmost seriousness.

"Police investigations are ongoing and every available avenue is being pursued to identify those responsible.

"We are also working closely with UK authorities and specialist agencies to explore additional operational support, enhanced detection capability and counter-drone technology."

"Jersey Airport remains safe, and we are determined to do everything necessary both to identify those responsible and to strengthen our capability to prevent this happening again," he continued.

"The public can be assured that all relevant agencies are working together at pace and that lessons from these incidents will be acted upon swiftly.

"Our airport is a vital lifeline for the island. We will not tolerate behaviour that jeopardises its safe operation or undermines public confidence in our transport infrastructure."

Airline Loganair, whose Southampton to Jersey flights on Friday and Saturday evening were cancelled, said it provided overnight accommodation to all affected passengers.

It added extra aircraft were flown from Scotland on both days to "protect early morning services from Jersey and minimise disruption".

Jersey RFC said while the team's flight taxied, it returned to the stand and stood there for a few hours before finally being cancelled around 21:30 GMT.

A spokesperson said: "As this was a group booking, there was no scope for rebooking given that it is half-term and sufficient flights were not available today.

"The team have had to rebook from Southampton on Monday morning. As a community club we have to work incredibly hard to fund local rugby and travel.

"Put simply this will cost thousands and thousands of pounds, including unforeseen hotel costs.

"Whilst we'll leave the authorities to investigate, the acts of a few have far impacting consequences both financial and physical. It couldn't be further from a 'bit of fun'."

Iselin Jones was flying home from Madeira on Saturday night when her plane got diverted to Paris after circling over Jersey.

"We were descending ready to land, when we were told that Jersey Airport was closed due to renewed drone activity and we most probably wouldn't be able to land and would be diverting to Paris," she explained.

"After holding for 10 to 15 minutes and circling at Jersey that is indeed what happened."

Jones said she was due to return on a rescheduled flight to Jersey at 20:00 GMT on Sunday but she and other passengers were uneasy there could be more disruption.

"Obviously, I think everybody's a little bit stressed about the fact that it's another nighttime flight," she said.

"Evening seems to be when the drones are active and we would have all preferred to be flying during daylight hours, either in the morning or at lunchtime, so we're all now trying to make the most of having an extra day in Paris.

"If we end up having the same experience that the people coming in from London had the first night of the drones, and then again yesterday, I think obviously you know it starts to feel a little bit different to that."