A drone shut England's second largest airport for 30 hours this week. Police think "eco-warriors" operated the drone and are looking for them. These activists protest to raise awareness of environmental problems. The drone stopped flights from leaving the UK's Gatwick Airport over two days. The airport had to close its runway. Over 120,000 travellers were affected. Many of them were going home for Christmas. Instead, they had to sleep on the airport floor or find flights from other airports. Some passengers spent nine hours sitting on a plane near the boarding gate.
The police are talking about how to stop other people using drones to cause chaos. They are worried drones could attack airports, nuclear power stations and other important buildings. Police were in "a game of cat and mouse" with the drone. They said: "When we look to reopen the airfield, the drone reappears again." This happened many times. The police and the British Army couldn't find the drone's operator. The police are worried a drone could cause a plane to crash. The operator of the drone could be given five years in jail.
