London Heathrow cancels a third of flights over snow

AFP - London Heathrow Airport cancelled 30 percent of its flights Sunday to cope with heavy snowfall overnight and possible freezing fog at Europe's busiest passenger air hub.

Heathrow said up to 10 centimetres (four inches) of snow were expected to fall which, without reductions to the flight schedule, would cause major disruption at the west London airport.

"We deeply regret any disruption caused to passengers by the cold weather," said Heathrow's chief operating officer Normand Boivin.

"Reducing the flight schedule means we can fly as many people as possible and return the airport to normal as quickly as possible."

The changes could affect around 400 flights.

Heathrow, the world's busiest international passenger airport, said it expected that more than 70 percent of its customers would be able to fly as airlines transfer passengers between flights.

Most of Britain was on amber alert, the Met Office national weather service's second-highest severe weather warning.

The Met Office forecast that the snow would ease over London and southeast England early Sunday, after an icy and foggy start.

Britain suffered its coldest night of the winter so far overnight Friday, with temperatures dipping to minus 12.4 degrees Celsius (9.7 degrees Fahrenheit) in South Newington in Oxfordshire, southern England.

Church Fenton in Yorkshire, northern England, recorded 16 centimetres of snow.

At the capital's other airports, London Gatwick, Britain's second busiest air hub, said all 270 of its scheduled departures got away Saturday.

London Stansted shut its runway briefly Saturday for snow clearing but said it was expecting normal flight operations Sunday.

London Luton warned passengers that departures and arrivals might be subject to delay or cancellation due to the weather.

Birmingham Airport, central England's main air hub, had to close its runway, forcing a number of flights to be cancelled or diverted as it too cleared the snow.

On the London Underground train network -- much of which runs above ground -- the weather caused the closure of the entire Jubilee Line, while parts of other lines were suspended, causing difficulties for those looking to get home after a Saturday night out.

London Mayor Boris Johnson said: "Across all our roads and rails, hundreds of workers are on standby to ensure that, should we receive a mega deposit of snow, we are in a position to keep the capital moving."

A string of Saturday's football fixtures were called off, as were some horse race meetings.

Europe's big freeze in pictures- click for more images The bright sunshine over the Eiffel Tower belies the freezing temperatures that have hit the French capital in recent days. Daytime temperatures in Paris have been recorded at –5°C. Almost half of France was placed on alert on Saturday due to the conditions. The homeless have been hit the hardest by the freezing temperatures. Since the beginning of last week 260 people have died across Europe. In Ukraine alone, where temperatures have plunged to -30°C at night, the extreme conditions have claimed 122 lives. (AFP) Inhabitants of the Belgian capital of Brussels were greeted with scenes from a winter wonderland on Friday evening. Temperatures dipped to -10°C in the centre of Belgium and -17°C in the eastern town of Elsenborn. (AFP) A camel at a zoo near the town of Rhenen in the Netherlands gets the hump at being stuck out in the cold during the freeze. (AFP) The Basque village of Ordura, around 30 km from Bilbao in the north of Spain, was given a good dusting of snow on Friday. Snow also fell in the centre and the south of the Spain covering the beaches of Catalonia and the Balearic Islands in a white blanket. (AFP) Groundstaff at the San Siro stadium in Milan, northern Italy, desperately try to clear the pitch of snow before this weekend's game between Inter Milan and Palermo. A number of matches across Europe have been cancelled after falling victim to the weather. (AFP) Birds in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev gather over an air vent from the city's metro line to keep warm. Temperatures in the country have dropped to -20°C during the day and -30°C at night. (AFP) Heavy snow also fell on the Italian capital city of Rome for the first time in 26 years on Friday. The city’s world-famous Colosseum had to be closed amid fears that visitors could be injured in the treacherous conditions.(AFP) The cool Arctic air which has been blowing over Western Europe from Siberia resulted in almost a foot of snow falling on Istanbul.(AFP)