Stubborn swan delays flights in London

 By 
Brian Koerber
 on 
Stubborn swan delays flights in London
Credit: Dantorp Aviation

Cue the Benny Hill theme song.

Departures at Heathrow Airport in London were delayed on Monday after a young swan made its way to runway 27L, disrupting planes from taking off for nearly 20 minutes.

A maintenance crew tried their best to get the bird to occupy a new location, but the swan wasn't very cooperative. Runway traffic started to pile up as the team tried everything from clapping at the swan to chasing it with their truck.

[seealso slug="airplane-walls-crack-open"]

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Finally, airplanes were given the go-ahead to take off and eventually, the trespassing bird was captured and relocated to a safer venue.

Though the video is comical, any delay at Heathrow airport is a major setback. Dantorp Aviation, which filmed the video, states that runway 27L sees approximately 40 departures per hour.

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