Flight operations have been suspended at Bristol airport as snow storm hits the UK, triggering blackouts and travel chaos.
The major travel hub has confirmed that all flight operations have been suspended until later tonight due to ‘challenging weather’.
The suspension will mainly impact inbound flights, the spokesperson said, and customers are advised to contact airlines for more information. As staff are trying to clear the runway.
Flights from Paris, Geneva, and Edinburgh have been cancelled. While the tracking website FlightRadar indicated a number of flights were diverted earlier this evening to other airports in the UK including Cardiff, Belfast and Birmingham.
Megabus UK has also said its buses are not serving the airport this evening due to the weather.
Flight operations have been suspended at Bristol airport as snow storm hits the UK, triggering blackouts and travel chaos
An image of a snow covered road at the Chartist Bridge
Vehicles negotiating the snow in dangerous conditions
A Bristol Airport spokesperson said: ‘The Bristol Airport team are working hard on snow clearing but challenging weather means that flight operations have been suspended until later tonight.
‘This will mainly impact inbound flights but any concerned customers are advised to contact their airline for more information.’
This comes as the Met Office has issued new warning maps showing which areas will be hit the hardest by heavy snow and temperatures of -10C, as major cities ‘activate’ emergency plans.
A Met Office spokesperson confirmed the temperatures reached a low of -8.6C in Aboyne in Aberdeenshire overnight.
Chilly conditions were expected to continue for most of Saturday, today with most places ranging from 2-5C, with highs of 7C in south-west England. The coldest temperature recorded in January last year was minus 14C, in Dalwhinnie in the Highlands.
The Met Office has warned that up to 1ft 4in (40cm) of snow could blanket parts of the UK.
The forecaster put in place a yellow snow warning for most of England and the whole of Wales from 12pm today until 11.59pm on Sunday, while Northern areas of Scotland have yellow warnings until 10am tomorrow.
Two amber warnings, however, have been issued from Newcastle upon Tyne down to Manchester from 9pm today until 11.59pm tomorrow and from Stoke on Trent to just above Cardiff from 6pm today until midday tomorrow.