UAV forces Czech airliner to abort takeoff

<p>An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), flying close to Prague&rsquo;s V&aacute;clav Havel International Airport, forced air traffic controllers to issue an &ldquo;immediate stop&rdquo; message to an airliner on its takeoff roll.</p> <p>The incident, involving a Boeing 737-800 of Czech carrier Travel Service, occurred May 6. The aircraft was operating on behalf of SmartWings, Travel Service&rsquo;s scheduled airline arm, on a flight to Dubai.</p> <p>According to incident-recording website aeroinside.com, the flight had been cleared for takeoff from Prague&rsquo;s runway 12 and was accelerating down the runway when the tower instructed the aircraft to abort takeoff.</p> <p>The crew slowed the aircraft to taxiing speed about 840 m/2700 ft. down the runway.</p> <p>An incoming service, a Bulgaria Air Embraer ERJ190, is also understood to have been told by the tower to go around when it was on final approach at 650 m/2000 ft.</p> <p>Confirming the incident, a Travel Service spokeswoman said controllers had ordered the crew to abort their takeoff after a UAV was spotted beyond the end of the runway, in the path of the departing 737.</p> <p>The incident is under investigation by authorities, she said.</p> <p>Similar incidents are becoming increasingly common around European airports, with fears that the engine ingestion of a UAV at a critical moment on approach could result in a serious incident.</p>