A 47-year-old man and a 54-year-old woman have been arrested in connection with the "criminal use of drones" that forced the shutdown of London's Gatwick international airport for several days, affecting 140,000 holiday travelers.

Police said the pair were from the small town of Crawley, near Gatwick.

No one had claimed responsibility for the bizarre incidents that forced the closure of the airport for about 36 hours from Wednesday night until Friday morning.

The industrial-grade drones would dart into the airspace, forcing the cancellation of flights, then disappear, only to reappear when authorities were set to resume flights.

Gatwick said flights had resumed on Saturday. A spokesman said around 1,000 aircraft had been cancelled or diverted during the ordeal.

“Passengers should expect some delays and cancellations as we continue to recover our operations following three days of disruption and are advised to check with their airline before travelling to the airport,” a Gatwick spokesman said.

“Safety is Gatwick’s top priority and we are grateful for passengers’ continued patience as we work to get them to their final destination in time for Christmas.”

Gatwick said flights had started operating after "military measures" were put in place to try to counter the drones. Authorities did not elaborate, but it appeared to suggest electronic equipment that could both detect and shut down the drones.

Gatwick chief executive Stewart Wingate said the drone flights were “highly targeted” and had “been designed to close the airport and bring maximum disruption in the run up to Christmas,” The Guardian reported.

Gatwick, which serves over 43 million passengers a year, is the United Kingdom's second largest airport after London Heathrow.

Contributing: Associated Press

