The Independent's travel editor Simon Calder believes there will be more frustration on Friday for passengers currently stranded at Gatwick - even if flights begin to get under way again.

Speaking from the airport to the BBC News Channel, he said it is expected to be one of the busiest days of the year for air travel and the passengers will find themselves at "the back of the queue effectively".

"Travellers who have booked to travel will take priority," he said, describing the situation as "very messy".

Image source, Adam Weitzel-Leishman

Adam Weitzel-Leishman moved to America with his wife in 2013, and this is the first Christmas they've been able to travel back to England to spend time with his family in Chesterfield.

He said: "We were trapped at JFK airport in New York for five hours this morning until our airline booked us a hotel, as we’re three hours from home in Pennsylvania.

"We had booked a flight from Gatwick later in the day today to Geneva, where my parents were meeting me and my wife for the weekend, before we get back to England. My parents are in Geneva right now, on holiday without us.

"Unfortunately, we won’t be receiving a refund from the hotel we were staying at in Switzerland, nor the flight we had coming back to Manchester airport.

"The only flights we could book were several days out, so we chose one on Saturday heading to Edinburgh, where we will have to rent a car and drive down into Chesterfield.

"In all, this disruption has cost us over $600 and about three days. It baffles me to see they’re bringing the army in to take care of drones, the police should be equipped and trained for these situations."

Radio 4 PM

The Labour peer Lord Harris led a 2016 independent review into London's preparedness in the event of a terror attack and highlighted the potential for drones to be used to disrupt flights.

He tells Radio 4's PM programme that there has been a "complacency" towards drones, calling on the government to use current technology which "sends the drones back to the sender ...or makes them spiral very slowly down to the ground".

Isobel Berman said: "I’m stranded in Iceland due to the drones at Gatwick.

"There has been no customer service from easyJet and when we called them we were cut off multiple times.

"We managed to book a hotel online through their services tonight and are flying to Luton tomorrow hopefully, however the hotel is over one hour from the airport, with no shops, restaurants or food in the hotel and easyJet will not provide food or compensation to the nearest town which is nowhere close to walking distance.

"Take a look at the area our hotel is in: we feel completely stranded, alone, clueless and desperate."

Image source, Isobel Berman

Image source, Claire Songhurst

Claire Songhurst said: "We're currently in Basel trying to get home.

"EasyJet ‘customer service’ was non-existent. The man at the ‘customer service’ desk said he worked for Swissport and couldn’t help us. He gave us a list of telephone numbers that didn’t work.

"My friend’s husband booked us onto a flight to Bristol tomorrow, and I managed to book a hotel near the airport.

"We still have to arrange getting home from Bristol."

Image source, PA

A couple due to be married on Saturday and their wedding party are among those affected by the disruption.

Tayo Abraham, 31, from Glasgow, and her husband-to-be Ope Odedine were due to fly to Marrakesh in Morocco on Wednesday with nine family and friends.

Their Air Arabia flight was due to depart at 20:40 GMT, but they were kept on the plane until 02:00 GMT and brought back to the terminal.

Miss Abraham said: "It's been a year that we've been planning this, we can't start rearranging the wedding.

"Everything has been disrupted but aside from the cost it's the emotional side, the trauma."

Ms Abraham and her fiance have manged to book an alternative flight from Manchester Airport on Friday morning but she said they may have to "trim" back on guests as the additional cost was too much for everyone.

"Most of the guests are there already. We have to be there," she added. "I just want to get there and get this over with, but it will be disappointing for everyone that isn't able to travel."

Image source, Hannah Simpson

Hannah Simpson has contacted the BBC about her experience with the Gatwick disruption.

She said: "We came from the Isle of Man, stayed the night at Gatwick and this morning checked in for Cape Verde with Tui.

"It’s been horrendous. I am now on a coach with my 19 month old daughter and my parents whom I’m travelling with are on another coach all going to Stansted airport.

"We’ve had no communication from anyone. About 300 people following each other trying to find coaches, children cold, people crying, it’s awful.

"There is no one to tell you what’s going on which makes it ten times worse.

"After a horrendous year this was meant to be a relaxing holiday away from it all where as now I’m on a coach tired and hungry and my parents are on another one."

Image source, Hannah Simpson

Mark Cleverly and his family were planning to fly to Geneva tonight to start a skiing holiday in France.

He said: "We have had to re-book a flight to Geneva from Heathrow costing over £1,000 one way.

"We are due to return on Christmas Eve to Gatwick with easyJet and hope that this is sorted out before then otherwise we are not getting home for Christmas."

Bob Dale
BBC Live reporter

The campaign group Communities Against Gatwick Noise Emission , external(CAGNE) has described today's events as "an early Christmas present for those that suffer aircraft noise".

It says it doesn't condone the flying of drones near airports, but said tens of thousands of residents today "enjoyed some respite from the aircraft motorways above their homes that usually, in part, blight their lives day and night".

In case you missed it, this was how a group of children tried to pass the time during the Gatwick disruption earlier.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling has also given more details about the efforts to track down the perpetrators.

He told the BBC: "There's a huge amount of effort going on - we've got up-to date-technology, we've brought special technology into Gatwick to try and track this down.

"There's a huge police effort," he added.

Asked to speculate about what's behind the incident, Mr Grayling said "there's no sense of motive", and reiterated there was no suggestion of a terrorist act.

"The counter-terrorist police have been very clear that they've seen no evidence that this is intended to be a terrorist act.

"It's clearly someone who wants to disrupt Gatwick Airport and there's an intense police operation.

"We've go two police forces in Surrey and Sussex working together to try and catch the perpetrator, supported by the Met, supported by the counter-terrorism police and no evidence of a terrorist link at the moment."

Captain Paul Watts, Chief Pilot and Director of Flight Operations at the National Police Air Service, said: “The National Police Air Service has been involved in helping search the area near Gatwick Airport for the drone pilot and guide police on the ground.

“Sussex Police requested our support shortly after 21:00 GMT on Wednesday, and again this morning at 09:00.

"So far, we have used three helicopter crews, from our NPAS Redhill, NPAS London and NPAS Benson bases.”

Bob Dale
BBC Live reporter

Thomas Boon is a private pilot, drone owner and writer on aviation issues.

He believes the UK regulations are too restrictive on responsible drone pilots, making it too expensive for many, including himself, to get the necessary certificate.

He favours a register of drone owners.

Drone expert Carys Kaiser said the apparent extended battery life of the drones above Gatwick Airport suggested they had been specially modified.

Bob Dale
BBC Live reporter

Among the passengers caught up in today's disruption were a group of pets, including dogs rescued in Cyprus and on their way to start a new life in the UK.

Helen Evans contacted us with her concerns, as the flight was diverted, first to Liverpool and then to Manchester.

Image source, Love Cyprus Rescue Dogs

The airline carrying the dogs was Tui, which says the plane had to be flown from Liverpool to Manchester once the human passengers had disembarked, because of live cargo restrictions at John Lennon Airport.

It says the animals were given the best care throughout their extra-long journey.