UK travel chaos as air traffic control down affecting all international flights
Birmingham, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Stansted, Newcastle, Manchester, Gatwick and Luton are among the airports affected.
Passengers across the UK have shared their frustration on social media, with people on planes in Liverpool and Manchester saying they're sitting on the runway with no sign of taking off.
Follow along with our live blog below for the latest updates.
17:14 Chiara Fiorillo
Airlines are attempting to recover their flight operations after an air traffic control (ATC) fault caused major disruption this afternoon.
The technical glitch affected flights across the UK as the number of aircraft which could fly in England and Wales was restricted, ATC provider NATS said.
It has left many aircraft and flight crew out of position.
While the issue was ongoing, British Airways said the problem was "affecting the vast majority of our flight."
17:08 Chiara Fiorillo
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has said that while the issue has been resolved, "continued disruption" is expected.
She has urged passengers to check the status of their flight with their individual airlines.
I am aware of a technical issue which impacted @NATS operations causing travel disruption this afternoon.
I have been informed systems have now been restored but continued disruption is expected, and passengers should check with individual airports for advice. — Heidi Alexander MP (@Heidi_Labour) July 30, 2025
17:04 Chiara Fiorillo
NATS, the National Air Traffic Service, is the UK's leading provider of air traffic control services.
The company handles over 2.5 million flights and looks after 250 million passengers travelling over the UK and across the North Atlantic every year.
Beyond air traffic control, NATS also provides consultancy and delivery services in all aspects of air traffic management. NATS is the UK's leading provider of air traffic control services (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
17:01 Chiara Fiorillo
Passenger David Ogilvie said he is in a plane on the runway at Newcastle Airport - but has no idea when the aircraft will be allowed to depart.
He told us he hasn't got "a clue what time we will be going - one minute they say we can go, then next time it's cancelled."
16:57 Chiara Fiorillo
Passenger Mark Robson told us he boarded a Vueling flight to Bilbao at T4 Heathrow at 3.30pm, expecting nothing more than a thirty minute delay.
However, once everyone was on board, passengers were warned they could face a delay of up to three hours.
He shared: "Once everyone was on board and we were ready to depart, we were informed that, because of the breakdown in the air traffic control European communication system, all flights were grounded and we could expect to be on the plane for three hours before we could depart.
"A further update from our captain says the situation is 'confusing', with some saying we should disembark while others are saying the problem is fixed.
"The captain wants us to stay on the plane for now in the hope that, amongst the massive backlog of flights waiting to depart, we might get an opportunity to leave Heathrow.
"I very much doubt it and am now counting the minutes until we can go home and start our compensation claim."
16:55 Chiara Fiorillo
Heathrow Airport said flights have resumed following the issues - and it urged passengers to check with their airline before travelling.
A spokesperson for the airport said: "Flights at Heathrow have resumed following a technical issue at the NATS Swanwick air traffic control centre.
"We are advising passengers to check with their airline before travelling. We apologise for any inconvenience caused."
16:53 Chiara Fiorillo
NATS said in its latest statement: "Our engineers have now restored the system that was affected this afternoon.
"We are in the process of resuming normal operations in the London area.
"We continue to work closely with airline and airport customers to minimise disruption.
"We apologise for any inconvenience this has caused."
16:50 KEY EVENT
About 30 minutes after issuing an initial alert, the agency said engineers had fixed the problem and that it was "in the process of restoring normal operations."
16:43 Chiara Fiorillo
More than 700,000 passengers suffered disruption when flights were grounded at UK airports on August 28, 2023 after NATS suffered a technical glitch while processing a flight plan.
16:40 Chiara Fiorillo
The National Air Traffic Service, or NATS, said its engineers are "working hard to resolve the problem as quickly as possible."
However, currently it's unclear how long the disruption will last. Aircraft over London this afternoon
16:36 Chiara Fiorillo
Newcastle Airport has confirmed all departures are currently suspended because of the technical issue.
The airport shared the update on X and said it will provide more information in due course.
Important passenger information
An issue in London's airspace is impacting national airport operations and all departures are currently suspended. We will provide an update in due course. — Newcastle International Airport (@NCLairport) July 30, 2025
16:33 Chiara Fiorillo
Several flights scheduled to arrive at UK airports are being forced to conduct holding patterns or divert elsewhere.
16:31 KEY EVENT
A statement from air traffic control provider Nats said: "As a result of a technical issue at Nats Swanwick air traffic control centre, we are limiting the number of aircraft flying in the London control area in order to ensure safety, which is always our first priority.
"We apologise for any delays this may cause.
"Our engineers are working hard to resolve the problem as quickly as possible and we are working closely with airlines to help minimise disruption.
"At this stage we cannot say how long it will be before operations are back to normal.
"Please check with your airline on the status of your flight."
16:27 Chiara Fiorillo
In a statement, Gatwick Airport said the technical issue meant there are currently no departures while the situation is being resolved.
"A technical issue impacting Nats is affecting all outbound flights across the UK," the airport said on X.
"There are currently no departures from London Gatwick while the situation is being resolved.
"We are working with Nats to resume flights as quickly as possible. Inbound flights are still landing at the airport.
"Passengers should check the status of their flights with their airline."
16:25 KEY EVENT
Gatwick airport has said an air traffic control "technical issue" is affecting all outbound flights across the UK.
16:24 Chiara Fiorillo
Flightradar, which monitors air traffic at all time, said the issues is affecting southern parts of the UK.
The greatest impact will be felt at Heathrow Airport, which is the biggest airport in the country, it added.
Per @eurocontrol technical issues have closed the London CTA, affecting flights across the southern UK. Flights holding outside the CTA, diversions and delays are expected to mount. Greatest impact will be to Heathrow. https://t.co/umCnl9b5KP pic.twitter.com/LTTVtPrdNY — Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) July 30, 2025
16:12 Chiara Fiorillo
Flights are facing disruption this afternoon with no planes landing or taking off from Heathrow.
According to reports, this could be due to "radar issues" affecting air traffic.
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