Scotland’s weather: Airports affected by ice and snow south of Border

While Scotland escaped the worst of the wintery blast which hit many parts of England, problems with several London airports paralysed flights further north.

Up to 10cm of snow fell across some parts of England on Saturday night and into Sunday afternoon, causing disruptions to air, road and rail transport.

Heathrow Airport, which pre-emptively cancelled half its flights yesterday, was the worst affected by adverse weather conditions over the weekend. The majority of flights to Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow airports with British Airways and BMI were cancelled.

Meanwhile, at Gatwick Airport, flights to Edinburgh and Glasgow airports were delayed by up to four hours as planes were grounded while waiting for skies and runways to clear.

Heathrow chief operating officer Normand Boivin said: “This decision ensures that the greatest number of passengers can fly with the minimum amount of disruption.

“It also means that those passengers whose flights are cancelled will know in advance, and can make alternative arrangements or rebook in relative comfort.”

British Airways detailed more than 150 flight cancellations from Heathrow on its website, while Ryanair cut 24 flights across Europe.

A spokesman from Glasgow Airport said the hub had taken in flights unable to land at other airports due to the snow at the weekend.

“We’ve taken two diversions – one was an Emirates flight from Dubai going to Birmingham and the other was a flight to Delhi from Heathrow.

“We’ve seen a knock-on effect from England, though,” he said, adding that by lunchtime yesterday four flights to Heathrow had been cancelled and an equal number heading to Glasgow were similarly grounded. “We’re advising passengers to check with their airline.”

Flights to and from the Western Isles were unaffected by the adverse weather conditions yesterday.

Eskdalemuir in Dumfries and Galloway received 5cm of snow along with a light dusting in the Highlands and Southern uplands, but the rest of Scotland remained unaffected by the cold weather that caused chaos south of the Border.

Dave Britton, weather forecaster for the Met Office, said that Scotland had escaped the worst of the weather because it avoided a collision of milder conditions from the west and a very cold front from Eastern Europe, which caused snow across England.

“It’s a typical winter for Scotland, but there’s lots of snow for England,” he said. “Ice is now the real concern, and that battle remains the story as we head into next week.

“There is potential for ice and snow on higher ground, but more substantial snow for Scotland and the rest of the UK is not expected. If you are going out check the forecast before you go through agencies like Traffic Scotland or your local radio.”

Commuters are being warned to take care as they head to work today as ice and freezing fog descend on Scotland’s roads.

Some freezing fog patches are possible, especially in the Carse of Stirling and around Perth, as well as through the M8 corridor and on the M74.

East Coast, CrossCountry, First ScotRail and Virgin trains were all running as normal in Scotland yesterday, but south of the Border was a different story as Southern and Southeastern Trains were, in some cases, unable to even provide a bus replacement service for delayed trains due to combined rail and road disruption.

Cars were stranded for seven hours on the M25 in Hertfordshire, while up to 100 motorists were stuck on the M40 in Oxfordshire.

Church Fenton, in North Yorkshire, and Wattisham, in Suffolk, recorded 16cm of snow yesterday, while up to 15cm was forecast for parts of Cumbria, Lincolnshire, East Anglia, North Yorkshire, the Peak District and the Midlands.

The lowest recorded temperature of the weekend in Britain was -12.4C (9.7F) in South Newington, Oxfordshire, on Friday night.