More than 600 flights faced cancellations on Tuesday in the United Kingdom as a technical glitch impacted the air traffic control system, leading to disruptions at major airports nationwide, as reported by Flightradar24. The issue was pinpointed within Britain’s National Air Traffic Services (NATS) flight processing system, prompting urgent action by engineers to address the situation, which affected air travel throughout the country.
NATS provided an update stating that a solution had been implemented, with the flight system gradually returning to normal operations. Around 625 flights to and from U.K. airports, including London Heathrow, were grounded, impacting various airlines like British Airways, EasyJet, KLM, and Lufthansa, as per Flightradar24’s data.
Passengers vented their frustrations on social media, citing being stranded on runways for extended periods before eventual flight cancellations. Many criticized the lack of communication from the airlines amidst the chaos. Affected airports encompassed London’s Stansted and City, Manchester, Birmingham, Gatwick, and Scotland, advising travelers to stay updated on their flight statuses directly with the airlines.
Budget carrier EasyJet disclosed the inability to operate some flights, attributing delays across Europe to the system malfunction. Heathrow Airport’s website displayed numerous cancellations and delays for short-haul flights heading to European destinations. The root cause of the technical issue remained unclear at the time.
