London Heathrow airport is warning of disruption for nearly two hours on Wednesday as the late Queen’s coffin is moved from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall.
The aim is to “ensure silence over central London” as the procession moves.
The UK’s busiest airport says there will be “further changes to the Heathrow operation on Monday 19 September” – the day of the funeral.
In addition, the Scottish airline Loganair says it will not operate flights during the funeral.
What is happening today?
At 2.22pm, the Queen’s coffin will begin its journey from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall – a journey of about one mile through central London.
King Charles III, Prince William and Prince Harry will walk behind the coffin.
The late Queen will lie in state at Westminster Hall until the funeral on Monday. The public will be able to visit from 5pm on Wednesday to 6.30am on Monday.
Why is Heathrow affected?
The usual flight path for aircraft landing at Heathrow crosses the capital just south of the centre, which would produce a significant amount of noise in the area of the events.
A Heathrow spokesperson said: “Out of respect for the period of mourning following the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Heathrow will be making appropriate alterations to our operation.
“Some flights between 1.50pm and 3.40pm local time on Wednesday 14 September will be disrupted to ensure silence over central London as the ceremonial procession moves from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall.
“We anticipate further changes to the Heathrow operation on Monday 19 September, when Her Majesty’s funeral is due to take place, and will communicate those in more detail over coming days.
“We apologise for the disruption these changes cause, as we work to limit the impact on the upcoming events.”
How many flights and passengers will be affected on Wednesday?
Because the airport is, unusually, on “easterlies” the disruption will be limited.
Due to the wind direction, aircraft are landing from the west, rather than the east. While departing planes will take off to the east, towards central London, they can be routed away from Westminster relatively easily.
The Independent has identified flights on British Airways from Heathrow to Amsterdam, Basel, Dusseldorf, Faro, Hamburg, Rome, Stockholm and Warsaw, due to depart between 1.55pm and 3.40pm, that are described by BA as “cancelled due to airport restrictions”.
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