Nearly 300 Flights Cancelled as Heathrow, Manchester Among UK Airports Hit by Tech Glitch

Nearly 300 flights were cancelled on Tuesday after a technical problem hit UK air traffic control provider NATS, disrupting operations at major airports including Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Stansted, according to flight-tracking website Flightradar24.

NATS said the disruption was caused by an issue with its flight-processing system. Engineers were working to restore normal operations, while stressing that UK airspace remained open and flights were still departing.

“Flights are still departing and airspace is open, but recovery will take some time,” NATS said, apologising for the disruption.

UK airports affected by NATS technical issue

Flightradar24 said the problem had prompted strict controls on arriving and departing flights across the London flight information region.

Several airports reported delays and cancellations, including London Luton, Birmingham, Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh. Dublin Airport in Ireland also warned that both incoming and outgoing flights could be disrupted.

British Airways said the technical issue was affecting its services and was “entirely out of our control”, adding that it was working to help affected passengers reach their destinations as quickly as possible.

The cause of the technical problem was not immediately known. NATS said it was working urgently to resolve the issue, while the full impact on flight operations continued to emerge.