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LONDON - Thick fog grounded hundreds of flights at London airports on Thursday, stranding thousands of travellers at one of the peak travel periods of the year.
The flight chaos looked set to continue on Friday after British Airways said all domestic flights at Heathrow airport and some European services had been cancelled and more planes might be grounded.
The airline said severe fog was expected to last for another 48 hours and forecasters at the Met Office warned there was a risk of fog hanging over the southeast of England during the Christmas period, continuing to next week.
About 500 people spent the night at Heathrow after British Airways cancelled all domestic and some European flights to and from the airport because of poor visibility.
Airport operator BAA, which runs Heathrow and six other airports in the country, warned of overcrowding and delays for people visiting families for Christmas or leaving on holiday.
At least 350 of 1,300 flights at Heathrow were grounded.
Flights were cancelled at other airports, including 30 in Scotland, as the disruption spread.
- REUTERS
