Queen Elizabeth's funeral: UK to cancel 100 flights over London "to avoid noise"

More than 100 flights to London's Heathrow Airport will be cancelled on Monday "to avoid noise" during Queen Elizabeth's funeral. 15% of the 12,000 flights scheduled to take off or land on Monday, September 19, will be impacted, the west London airport announced, according to Sky News. According to the article, British Airways, the airline most impacted, will cancel 100 short-haul flights as a result of the limitations. The two-minute national silence will be observed as the Queen's funeral at Westminster Abbey draws to a close just before noon, Heathrow announced earlier.

No flights will be allowed to take off or land from 15 minutes before the silence starts until 15 minutes after it ends. Departures and arrivals will also be halted during the arrival of the funeral cortege and procession at Windsor Castle and diverted around the castle during the private family service on Monday night.

A Heathrow spokesman said: "Heathrow, Nats (the air traffic control provider), and airlines are supporting the ceremonial aspects for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II's state funeral at Westminster Abbey and the committal service at Windsor Castle on Monday.

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"As a mark of respect, operations to and from the airport will be subject to appropriate changes in order to avoid noise disruption at certain locations at specific times on Monday," the spokesman was quoted as saying. Some flights in and out of Heathrow Airport were disrupted on Wednesday afternoon in order to ensure silence over central London during the procession transporting the Queen's coffin to Westminster Hall.

On Wednesday, the BBC reported that non-standard aircraft, including drones flying below 2,500ft (760m), are banned from flying over central London until after the funeral on September 19. In a tweet, the Metropolitan Police confirmed it would "take enforcement action against anyone using a drone without permission." There will be an additional central London and Windsor restriction issued in due course, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said. Queen Elizabeth II died aged 96 at her Balmoral Castle summer residence in Scotland on September 8.

With inputs from PTI