Manchester flight involved in one of the country's closest ever near misses with a drone

A plane was involved in one of the UK's closest recorded near-misses with a drone in the skies above Greater Manchester.

The incident involved an Airbus A320 aircraft flying at 8,000ft over having just taken off from Manchester Airport, according to a report by the UK Airprox Board (UKAB).

Both pilots in the cockpit of the Easyjet Manchester-to-Athens flight "saw a large drone pass very close to the aircraft windscreen", the inquiry found.

The drone was described as blue, around 50cm long and weighing "at least 10kg".

The flight was travelling at 8,000 feet above the region having taken off at Manchester Airport (MEN MEDIA)

Separation between the aircraft and the flying gadget was officially listed as "zero".

The UKAB put the September 4 incident in the most serious risk category because "a definite risk of collision had existed".

An easyJet spokesman said the airline "fully supported the investigation by providing all requested information".

"The safety and wellbeing of passengers and crew is always easyJet's highest priority" he added.

"EasyJet recognises the growing popularity of drones and therefore welcomes efforts by EASA (European Union Aviation Safety Agency), the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) and other regulators across Europe, which govern regulation in this area, to take this issue seriously and ensure that the correct measures and regulations are put in place to ensure the safety of aviation is not compromised."

It was one of eight near-misses between aircraft and drones or suspected drones featured in the UKAB's latest monthly report.

The CAA's code of conduct, the Dronecode, sets out rules for drone users, including staying below 400ft and flying at least 50m (164ft) away from buildings and people.

In March 2019 the drone no-fly zone around airports was extended to protect aircraft.

New legislation came into force banning the gadgets from being flown within 3.1 miles of airports.

Previously, only a 0.6-mile zone was in place.

Drone sightings at Gatwick Airport in December 2018 caused around 1,000 flights to be cancelled or diverted over 36 hours, affecting more than 140,000 passengers in the run-up to Christmas.