Heathrow warns of no-fly delays around silence at Queen Elizabeth's funeral

The airport is between Westminster Abbey, where the funeral takes place, and Windsor Castle, where she will be interred

The funeral service begins at 11am on Monday and the silence is scheduled for its end, at about 11.55am. Bloomberg

Flights from Heathrow Airport will be stopped for 30 minutes to ensure they do not roar through a two-minutes’ silence being held to honour Queen Elizabeth II at her funeral on Monday.

The no-fly zone will last from 15 minutes before until 15 minutes after the silence.

More than 100 Heathrow flights out of about 12,000 will be cancelled due to the queen's funeral, which takes place at 11am (2pm UAE).

Driving around the Heathrow area will also be trickier on Monday. The airport is between Westminster Abbey, where the funeral is taking place, and Windsor Castle, where the queen will be interred.

Flights will also be grounded for the arrival of the funeral cortege and procession at Windsor Castle — only 16 kilometres from the airport — and diverted to minimise noise during the private family service on Monday night.

About 15 per cent of Heathrow's schedule on Monday will be disrupted.

“Heathrow, Nats (the air traffic control provider) and airlines are supporting the ceremonial aspects for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II's state funeral at Westminster Abbey and the committal service at Windsor Castle on Monday, September 19, 2022,” a Heathrow spokesman said.

“As a mark of respect, operations to and from the airport will be subject to appropriate changes in order to avoid noise disruption at certain locations at specific times on Monday.”

British Airways — the most-affected airline — will cancel 100 short-haul flights owing to the restrictions.

“To observe these moments on Monday, airlines will need to adjust their schedules accordingly, which will mean some changes to flights,” Heathrow said.

“Passengers affected by these changes will be contacted directly by their airlines about their travel plans and the options available to them.”

Roads around the airport are also expected to be extremely busy.

Passengers have been warned to avoid travelling by car to the airport, and to use public transport instead where possible.

After the funeral, King Charles III and his family will walk behind the queen’s coffin to Wellington Arch, near Green Park.

From there, they will be escorted in a motorcade to Windsor for a committal service in St George’s Chapel at 4pm.

At 7pm, the queen's closest family will return to the chapel for a private burial service.