Planespotters charged in India

Two planespotters from Bristol have been charged with illegally monitoring planes in India.

Stephen Hampton and Steven Ayres aroused suspicion when they asked staff at a Delhi hotel for a room overlooking a runway.

They were carrying an air traffic control scanner, laptop, binoculars and cameras.

Police arrested them on February 15 and questioned them about monitoring flights at Delhi International Airport.

The pair were hoping to be released without charge but a Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesman said they are due in court on Tuesday because they have now been charged with misusing communications equipment under the Indian Telegraph Act.

Mr Hampton and Mr Ayres are being held in a New Delhi immigration centre.