Thousands of airline passengers on flights to and from Gatwick airport are suffering disruption after the runway was closed following a problem with a departing British Airways plane.

Airport fire service vehicles escorted the aircraft as it was moved off the runway, flight tracking website Flightradar24 said.

The incident involved British Airways flight BA2279 to Vancouver, Canada.

Safety is our top priority

Flightradar24 reported the closure of the runway at 12.53pm and stated at 1.14pm it had reopened.

A Gatwick airport spokesperson said: “The main runway was closed for a short time today due to a departing aircraft having hot brakes.

“Safety is our top priority and the dedicated airport fire service swiftly attended to support the aircraft.

“A number of flights were diverted. The runway is now open and operating as normal.”

A British Airways spokesperson said: “Our pilots took the precautionary decision to cancel take-off due to a technical issue.

“Safety is always our top priority and we apologise to customers for the inconvenience caused.”