U.K. police release 2 people arrested in Gatwick drone investigation

British police on Sunday releasedwithout charge two people arrested in an inquiry into theillegal use of drones at London's Gatwick Airport that crippledoperations for three days last week.

Sussex Police arrested a 47-year-old man and a 54-year-old woman from the local area late on Friday after drones were flown onto the airfield between Wednesday and Friday, forcing about 1,000 flights to be diverted or cancelled and affecting 140,000 passengers.

"Both people have fully co-operated with our inquiries, andI am satisfied that they are no longer suspects in the droneincidents at Gatwick," Detective Chief Superintendent JasonTingley said on Sunday.

The two were held after information was passed to the police by a member of the public, Tingley told Sky News.

He said authorities were continuing to actively follow lines of investigation to catch those responsible for the most disruptive incursions from unmanned aerial vehicles seen at any major airport.

A damaged drone had been recoveredclose to the perimeter of the airport, he said, and it was being forensically examined for clues about whether it was controlled remotely from afar or by somebody in the vicinity.

No group has claimed responsibility for the disruption.

"We have kept an open mind throughout and that is still the case with regards to the motivation behind these incidents," he said.

Airport offering $86K reward

The drones were spotted at Britain's second-largest airport on Wednesday evening, forcing it to close its runway in the run-up to Christmas. Every time the airport sought to reopen the runway on Thursday, the drones returned.

Authorities finally regained control over the airfield after the army deployed unidentified military technology to guard the area, reassuring the airport that it was safe enough to fly.

The drones caused misery for travellers, many sleeping on the airport floor as they searched for alternative routes to holidays and Christmas family gatherings.

Watch:Flights resume after drone chaos at Gatwick Airport

Flights resume after drone chaos at Gatwick Airport

6 years ago

Duration 2:04

British police say they have a list of possible culprits for the drone crisis at Gatwick Airport. The country's second-busiest airport is trying to get back to normal, after days of travel turbulence. Flights resumed on Gatwick's busiest day of the year, but it wasn't without some bumps for both travellers and officials.

Airlines operating at Gatwick, which is located south of London, include easyJet, British Airways and Norwegian.

The airport said on Sunday it was offering a reward of 50,000 about $86,000 Cdn for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.

It said it was expecting to operate a full schedule of 785 flights on Sunday, although a small number of delays and cancellations could occur as the airport fully recovered.