‘Huge network failure’ hits UK air traffic control: Nation-wide system failure causes chaos for travellers that could last DAYS
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Travellers face ‘absolute chaos’ after a ‘huge network failure’ hit the UK’s air traffic control system, causing delays to flights that could last for days.
Britain’s National Air Traffic Services said it was experiencing ‘technical issues’ that had forced controllers to reduce the rate flights are able to land and take off.
The organisation did not provide any further information about what caused it or how long it would take to fix.
However, travel expert Simon Calder said the system outage would caused ‘misery’ for passengers – with contagion likely spreading across Europe.
He said flights are currently delayed for around three hours.
TV presenter Gabby Logan is among those affected by the shutdown, which has left her stranded on the runway at Budapest Airport.
She wrote: ‘After almost 3 weeks away from home I am hours from hugging my family. And have just been told UK airspace is shut. We could be here for 12 hours. So we sit on the plane and wait.’
*Are you affected by the UK air traffic control shutdown? Email [email protected]
Today is one of the busiest days for air travel of the year, making the ‘huge network failure’ all the more disruptive
Travel expert Simon Calder said the disruption would force Heathrow (pictured) to delay the frequency at which it allows flights to land
TV presenter Gabby Logan is among those affected by the shutdown, which has left her stranded on the runway at Budapest Airport
Mr Calder told Sky News: ‘What you will find is that if you are on the ground at Heathrow and Gatwick which are the busiest single runways in the world.
‘There is very little slack in the system. It’s going to be miserable. Meanwhile there and hundreds of planes up in the sky heading to the UK.
‘What’s going to happen to those aircraft, will some of them get down if they are in the vicinity of the airfield.
‘Otherwise you will see planes held on the ground in places like Amsterdam or otherwise being diverted if they’re on a longer flight. That would typically be to a continental airport or an Irish airport.’
Mr Calder said the shutdown would not cause safety issues because the system was ‘designed to cope’ with a shutdown and aircraft carried contingency fuel.
But he added: ‘This is of course one of the busiest days of the year. There are hundreds of thousands of people flying into the UK, frankly this is the last thing anyone needs.
‘It will at the very least have caused enough disruption for the system to be in disarray for certainly until the end of the day and possibly for a few further days ahead.’
The travel guru said air traffic controllers at Heathrow – the UK’s busiest airport – be forced to reduce the frequency at which flights are able to land.
He explained: ‘Normally you have flights landing typically every 90 seconds or so. They can switch away from the digital system and become much more analogue, bringing the aircraft in more manually. However, you are not going to be able to do it at the same rate.
‘For Heathrow and Gatwick in particular there is so little slack in the system that it can cause problems. If you’re reducing the flow rate coming in and keeping aircraft on the ground at those airports it will be a very difficult afternoon.’
The news was leaked out by the Scottish airline Loganair, which shared the news on Twitter.
It tweeted: ‘There has been a network-wide failure of UK air traffic control computer systems this morning.
‘Although we are hopeful of being able to operate most intra-Scotland flights on the basis of local coordination and with a minimum of disruption, north-south and international flights maybe subject to delays.
‘If you are flying with us today, please check our website for the latest information about your flight before setting off for the airport.’
NATS said in a statement: ‘We are currently experiencing a technical issue and have applied traffic flow restrictions to maintain safety. Engineers are working to find and the fix the fault.
‘We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.’
Are you affected by the UK air traffic control shutdown? Email [email protected]
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