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Passengers were stranded at Gatwick airport due to a drone sighting.Credit:PA/AP

Gatwick Airport on Sunday said it was offering a £50,000 reward for information"leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the criminal act that disrupted our flights over three days at the airport."

It cancelled flights on Wednesday night"following reports of drones flying over Gatwick’s airfield".

The episode exposed a major weakness in the country's ability to respond to a hostile drone attack,with flights grounded for 36 hours as authorities struggled to respond. Twenty four hours later,the government announced it was sending in the military.

The government has kept the details of the security operation secret,but the military equipment is thought to offer better tracking capabilities and give authorities early warning if drones are operated near Gatwick,located 45 kilometres south of London. British press also reported that Israeli counter-drone technology was deployed in the event of further drone sightings.

The last report of a drone sighting occurred on Friday night,when the airport was shut down for 70 minutes. No confirmed drone incursions have taken place since then - a factor that led many to assume police had found the responsible operators when they arrested the two suspects on Friday night.

The airport ran normally on Sunday.

With AP