FLIGHTS were temporarily disrupted and three people arrested after a van was driven through a security fence at Shannon Airport.
The incident, which happened at 6.20pm on Thursday (May 1), was a suspected attempt to reach the runway as the airport ramps up for a busy holiday weekend.
It’s understood that a white van went crashing through the fence but was stopped when it hit a trench some feet from the security fencing.
A number of people wearing orange jump suits, hard hats,and scarves over their faces then entered the restricted airside area and ran towards a taxi area of the runway.
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Airport Police officers responded to the scene from both airside and landside directions.
The three were arrested and were brought to a Clare Garda station.
Flight operations were suspended for a time, resulting in a number of inbound flights being placed in a holding pattern by air traffic control.
A spokesperson for the Shannon Airport Group has confirmed that normal operations have resumed “following an incident which required Gardaí assistance”.
“The airport suspended operations at 6.30pm and a number of flights were delayed as a result,” they said.
“The situation was promptly addressed by Gardaí and operations fully resumed at 7.30pm.”