Runways at two of the UK's busiest airports have been forced to close after Arctic weather unleashed a night of travel chaos across the UK.
All flights from London Gatwick and London Stansted airport were halted late on Sunday following several hours of heavy snowfall in the capital.
Photographs taken at Gatwick earlier in the day showed the runway area blanketed by snow, which reportedly began to fall at around 3pm.
Some onlookers also reported seeing snow ploughs being sent in to clear the runway, reports Sussex Live.
Two flights scheduled to arrive at the airport are also reported to have been sent north to the land, while other planes were shown circling Gatwick on a flight tracking website after being unable to land in the wintry conditions.
Confirming the runway closures in a statement on Twitter, Ryanair said: "Due to ongoing severe snowy weather across the UK, runways at both Stansted and Gatwick have been temporarily closed tonight (11 Dec) disrupting all flights scheduled to depart Stansted/Gatwick during this temporary closure period."
"While our teams are working hard to minimise disruption to customers, Ryanair advises all customers flying from the UK on 11/12 Dec to check the Ryanair website/app for flight status updates before travelling to the airport.
"We sincerely apologise for these weather-related disruptions which are entirely beyond our control."
A tweet from Stansted meanwhile said that passengers should "contact their airline" for the latest information on their flights.
De-icing work on aeroplanes had caused delays to travel at the airport since Sunday morning, while other passengers reported being stuck on the runway for several hours.
Heavy snow has also led to significant disruption on the roads, with delays on the M25 in Kent and queues in both directions around Junction 7 M23.
Photos taken on the M25 in Essex showed large tailbacks after large amounts of snow settled on the road - adding to fears over the Monday morning rush hour.
The Met Office has issued yellow weather warnings for ice and snow for the south east of England until 9am, with other areas also under warnings for heavy fog.
