Stansted Airport closed due to snow

A major holiday airport was shut Wednesday as the first snow of the winter to hit southern England caused havoc with road, rail and air travel, it was announced here. Stansted Airport in Essex, near London, where the snow was particularly heavy, had to close early today just as the first flights were due to operate, the airport said. Aberdeen in Scotland and Luton, outside London, were among other airports where the wintry conditions caused delays, while a number of main line rail services and Tube trains were delayed. A Stansted spokesman said: "Northern Essex seems to have got the worst of the snow and we had to shut the airport. "The roads round here are treacherous. We're working to get the airport open again and hope to start flights again some time this morning. We're advising passengers to check with their airlines." Aberdeen airport said there was snow overnight and there could be delays to flights, while Luton airport in Bedfordshire also warned of possible delays. On the railways, where passengers have endured floods and a series of non weather-related problems of late, there were a number of routes that were snow-affected. In London, there were delays on the London Overground, and the Metropolitan, Central and Bakerloo Tube lines. Stansted was able to open again later, but a spokesman for the Essex airport warned passengers that some flights had been cancelled and others would be delayed