Hundreds of flights cancelled after air-traffic control 'technical issue' at major UK airports | The National

Hundreds of flights have been disrupted at UK airports, including Heathrow. Photo: Flight RadarShow caption: Hundreds of flights have been disrupted at UK airports, incl…Knock-on delays across Europe after flights grounded at airports including Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted The NationalSeptember 08, 2026

Hundreds of flights were cancelled or delayed at major UK airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Stansted, due to a NATS technical issue.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander acknowledged the disruption would be frustrating for passengers and apologised.

The knock-on effects were expected to last several hours, despite engineers implementing a fix and airspace remaining open.

A similar NATS outage in 2023 cost airlines over £100 million in refunds and compensation, prompting a review of contingency plans.