Flights Cancelled at London City Airport

London City Airport has been shut indefinitely after a WW2 bomb was found in the Thames near its grounds on Sunday afternoon. Over 16,000 passengers had their flights cancelled on Monday 12th of February, but the plan to dispose of the bomb by Tuesday should see the airport back up and running without too many further delays.

The bomb, which weighs 500kg, is planned to be disposed of with controlled explosives after it has been freed from it's shell and floated to a safe location. Some passengers who were scheduled to travel on Monday have had their flights redirected to Southend Airport and some to Stansted.

It is not entirely uncommon to come across WW2 bombs, and only last year was a major travel route in Birmingham closed for almost 2 days after one was found. It was estimated that almost 15,000 old war bombs were disposed between 2006 and 2009. It is believed that over 24,000 tonnes of high explosives were dropped on just London alone during the war, which suggests many could still be found.

It is not only the UK that faces this problem. In 2011, 60,000 residents of the German city of Frankfurt were evacuated from their homes after a huge unexploded bomb was found, and thousands more are estimated to still be uncovered throughout the country.