The National Air Traffic Control Service ( NATS ) says that they are currently experiencing a technical issue and have applied traffic flow restrictions to maintain safety.
Statement at 15:15 UK time
We have identified and remedied the technical issue affecting our flight planning system this morning. We are now working closely with airlines and airports to manage the flights affected as efficiently as possible. Our engineers will be carefully monitoring the system’s performance as we return to normal operations.
The flight planning issue affected the system’s ability to automatically process flight plans, meaning that flight plans had to be processed manually which cannot be done at the same volume, hence the requirement for traffic flow restrictions. Our priority is always to ensure that every flight in the UK remains safe and we are sincerely sorry for the disruption this is causing. Please contact your airline for information on how this may affect your flight.
Statement at 14:20 UK time from NATs
This morning’s technical issue is affecting our ability to automatically process flight plans. Until our engineers have resolved this, flight plans are being input manually which means we cannot process them at the same volume, hence we have applied traffic flow restrictions. Our technical experts are looking at all possible solutions to rectify this as quickly as possible.
Our priority is ensuring every flight in the UK remains safe and doing everything we can to minimise the impact. Please contact your airline for information on how this may affect your flight. We are sincerely sorry for the disruption this is causing.
East Midlands Airport is affected and they issued the statement below at 1:12 pm on Monday 28 August:
We’re aware of a nationwide air traffic control issue that is affecting flights in and out of airports across the country. This may cause disruption to some flights at East Midlands Airport.
Please check the status of your flight with your airline and arrive at the time they advise. We’ll provide further updates as soon as possible.
NATS have sent updates today too – see below:
Statement at 12:40 UK time
We are continuing to work hard to resolve the technical issue. To clarify, UK airspace is not closed, we have had to apply air traffic flow restrictions which ensures we can maintain safety.
Statement at 12:10 UK time
We are currently experiencing a technical issue and have applied traffic flow restrictions to maintain safety.
Engineers are working to find and fix the fault.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.
