This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

Detectives have launched an investigation after three drones disrupted flights at an airport during a nearby music festival.

Leicestershire police said a pilot of one of the unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) had been interviewed by officers after it was reported to police at 9.30am on Saturday near the Download festival at Donington Park.

Two further drones were reported inside the restricted airspace at East Midlands airport at midnight and on Sunday at 1.30pm.

Flights were delayed at the airport as a result of the drones.

Police said they had carried out inquiries in conjunction with the Civil Aviation Authority and East Midlands airport.

Despite extensive inquiries at the scene, the pilots of the two other UAVs involved have not yet been identified, police said.

The festival, which was headlined by the heavy metal bands Def Leppard and Slipknot, took place in torrential rain this year, with some music fans abandoning the site before the start.

A spokeswoman for Leicestershire police said: “We are aware of three incidents where an unmanned aerial vehicle has been flown in restricted airspace near to the Download festival at Donington park, Castle Donington.”

She added: “Due to the incidents taking place in close proximity to East Midlands airport a number of flights were temporarily delayed as a result of each report.”

A spokesman for East Midlands airport said: “A TUI flight bound for Larnaca and a Ryanair flight to Pisa experienced minor delays departing EMA on Sunday due to the sighting of an unmanned aerial vehicle over the Download festival site.”