The move is a change for an industry where planes are generally instructed to take off and land by operators based in the airport.

London City Airport has become the first major international airport to control air traffic remotely.

Planes are being guided from a control tower more than 70 miles away.

A 50m-tall tower has been built at the airport, equipped with 14 high-definition cameras which will feed video and audio back to the remote-control centre in Hampshire, where air traffic controller NATS is based.

The technology was developed by Saab Digital Air Traffic Solutions in Sweden, where it was initially tested.

It marks a major change in step for the aviation industry, where planes are generally instructed to take off and land by operators based in the airport.AdvertisementThe airport's chief operating officer Alison FitzGerald said the remote tower aims to improve efficiency and safety.The runways are viewed on panoramic screens which are overlaid with additional information such as radar and weather data.