Flight chaos to last for days as 500 flights are cancelled by UK air traffic control

Tens of thousands of travellers faced flight delays and uncertainty today (Monday) after the UK’s air traffic control system was hit by technical problems that resulted in the cancellation of at least 500 flights in and out of British airports.

The National Air Traffic Service (NATS) said in a statement that a technical issue had forced restrictions to the flow of aircraft in and out of the UK today, at the end of a long weekend and one of the busiest holidays of the year for travel, amid reports of widespread flight delays into the country from popular holiday destinations.

As many as 80% of flights leaving the UK are delayed today following a 'huge failure' of the national air traffic control system - causing chaos for tens of thousands of holidaymakers on one of the busiest days of the year.

NATS said the technical issues forced controllers to switch from an automatic system for landing and dispatching flights to a manual one. They also confirmed that 78% of flights leaving Heathrow have been delayed, as well as 74% at Gatwick, 81% at Manchester, and 86% at Bristol.

According to analysis carried out by Cirium, 232 flights have been cancelled departing UK airports today – equivalent to around 8% of all departures. Meanwhile, 271 flights have been cancelled coming to UK airports – equivalent to around 9% of all arrivals.

Under UK law, those affected have legal rights that oblige the airlines to provide support to customers flying from a UK airport, arriving in the country on an EU or UK airline, or arriving at an EU airport on a UK airline.

Passengers on a Ryanair flight from Lanzarote to Newcastle delayed today.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) website says that in the case of a 'significant delay', the airline must provide a reasonable amount of food and drink, commonly in the form of vouchers, refunds for the cost of calls, and accommodation for passengers stuck overnight and transport to a hotel or their home.

The CAA accepts airlines are sometimes unable to organise such support, so passengers should make their own 'reasonable' arrangements and keep receipts to claim money back, but the authority adds that 'luxury hotels and alcohol' are unlikely to be paid for.

The authority adds that once a passenger accepts a refund or to travel later than the first available flight, then the airline is not obliged to provide food, drink or accommodation.

At the moment it is expected that these cancellations and delays will cause disruptions for several days until the systems are fully operable and the backlog of flights is got through.