THOUSANDS of snow stranded passengers due to travel from Gatwick Airport today have jetted off from London Stansted after extra flights were laid on.

Thomas Cook Airlines operated flights to Calgary and the Dominican Republic, while Cubana, Air Zimbabwe and Norwegian also transferred flights to Stansted.

Stansted has remained open during bad weather and Martin Lyall, the airport’s operations director, praised the performance of staff.

“We’re not through the bad weather yet but it’s been a fantastic effort so far to keep Stansted’s runway open this week,” he said.

“Much credit has to go to the well trained snow teams, and the dedication of all airport staff.

“We’ll do everything in our power to prepare for periods of adverse weather and react as quickly and efficiently as possible to ensure that we maintain business as usual.”