Snow strands Christmas travellers across Europe

Dec 19, 2010 |

IANS

London, Dec. 18: Christmas travel plans for more than a million people in Britain were thrown into chaos as snow and freezing temperatures wreaked havoc across the country forcing airlines to cancel flights, a media report said on Saturday.

Arctic conditions forced the cancellation of hundreds of flights from terminals up and down the country on what is traditionally the busiest weekend of the year for the travelling public, the Daily Telegraph reported.

Runway closures at the Heathrow and Gatwick airports in London led to delays of several hours for those who did manage to fly, but with more heavy snow forecast for Sunday, travellers have been warned that many more flights could be axed. A total of 630,000 people were due to fly in and out of Heathrow this weekend, with another 240,000 due to pass through Gatwick and tens of thousands more at regional airports, the report said.

Sub-zero temperatures could last until the New Year, forecasters warned, casting doubt on the plans of four million Britons who had been planning to leave the country for holidays abroad.

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