plane over houses
The departures runway was closed between 12:45pm and 12:52pm as the remote controlled craft flew dangerously in the air space. Getty

A departing plane at Heathrow was delayed for seven minutes on Saturday after a drone flew over the runway. The departures runway was closed between 12:45pm and 12:52pm as the remote controlled craft flew dangerously in the air space.

A spokesperson for Heathrow told the Telegraph: "The departure runway was closed for seven minutes. It didn't cause significant disruption."

After a number of close-calls, there is growing concern about the threat that hobby drones might pose to aircraft. At the end of December, a plane landing at Logan Airport in Canada saw a drone flying nearby; in July, a Lufthansa place came within 100m of a drone while landing at Warsaw Chopin Airport in Poland.

Worries continue to grow after drones were one of the most popular presents this Christmas, leading a number of authorities around the world to reiterate their national laws on the flying technology.

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