Flights at London’s Heathrow were urged to check flight information with their airlines after an air traffic control issue caused disruption to all UK airports on Wednesday, July 30. Some passengers reported delays and experts were forecasting the issue could have ripple effects for days.
Airlines were forced to cancel more than 150 flights on Wednesday and thousands more were grounded, reports said.
The issue was traced to the National Air Traffic Services (Nats) control center in Swanwick, Hampshire, where a software error has been blamed for radar systems that stopped displaying flights around 2:30pm local time. The air traffic control provider NATS apologized for the situation and said it had taken 20 minutes to resolve the issue by switching to a back-up system. All systems were reportedly fully operational within an hour.
“This was an isolated event and there is no evidence of malign activity,” Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said on social media. “Flights have now resumed and I am grateful to airlines who are working hard to get people to where they need to be. I will continue to receive regular updates. Passengers should check with airlines before traveling.”