A technical fault in the UK air traffic control flight processing system on September 8, 2026, caused nearly 300 flight cancellations and widespread delays affecting departing flights across major UK airports.
NATS Flight Processing System Failure Disrupts Departing Flights
The disruption originated from a failure within NATS’ flight processing system. NATS confirmed engineers were onsite urgently working to fix the issue and have implemented a fix, with the flight system starting to recover.
Airspace remained open during recovery, but full normal operations had not resumed by the time of reporting, causing ongoing delays across airports including Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Stansted, Luton, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, and Glasgow.
Heathrow and Gatwick Among Airports Most Impacted
Heathrow Airport
experienced about 100 flight cancellations and 367 delays, while Gatwick Airport faced approximately 250 flight delays, representing around 31% of its scheduled departures. Flight tracking platforms Flightradar24 and FlightAware provided data on these cancellations and delays.
Disruptions also extended to Dublin Airport, where departures and arrivals were delayed due to related UK airspace control issues.
Airline and Passenger Impact
British Airways stated the situation was entirely out of their control and the airline was in touch with customers, working to get them moving as quickly as possible. EasyJet noted some flights were unable to operate and delays affected flights across Europe.
Thousands of passengers
faced cancellations or delays across more than 15 UK airports. Passengers were advised to check flight status with their airlines amid the disruptions.
Past Incidents and Industry Impact
Previous NATS technical failures included a 2024 flight plan processing malfunction and a 2025 radar-related technical issue, both causing multi-hour flight disruptions. The 2024 incident reportedly cost airlines over £100 million in refunds and compensation.
