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Flight disruption caused by a major National Air Traffic Services (NATS) technical failure has eased, with major UK airports reporting that operations are returning to normal.
The NATS outage on Tuesday 8 September caused widespread disruption, with more than 2,000 flights affected across Tuesday and Wednesday. Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and London Stansted have since indicated that normal operations are expected to resume.
British Airways, one of the airlines heavily affected by the outage, previously reported almost 550 cancelled flights affecting more than 85,000 passengers.
Although the immediate disruption is easing, passengers affected by cancelled or delayed flights should still check their airline's latest information and understand their passenger rights.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) says passengers are unlikely to receive compensation for delays or cancellations directly caused by the NATS outage because the incident is likely to qualify as an “extraordinary circumstance”. However, airlines must still provide appropriate care to affected passengers.
Passengers whose flights were cancelled may be entitled to a refund or re-routing, while those facing significant delays may be entitled to food, refreshments and, where necessary, accommodation. The CAA's passenger rights guidance explains what travellers can expect and what costs they may be able to recover.
The CAA is carrying out an independent review of the incident, while NATS is conducting its own investigation into the technical failure.
For travellers flying from the UK in the coming days, the situation appears to be stabilising. However, checking your flight status directly with your airline before leaving for the airport remains advisable.
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