Thousands of passengers face continuing disruption at Stansted and other UK airports after an air traffic control failure.
Cancellations and delays are expected today (Wednesday, September 9) as airlines deal with the effects of a technical problem at Nats, which provides air traffic control services at 15 UK airports.
The disruption began on Tuesday and affected tens of thousands of passengers. Flight monitoring website Flightradar24 say 1,300 flights have been cancelled to and from UK airports.
Stansted is among the airports affected, although the notes did not give a separate number of cancellations for the Essex airport. Passengers are advised to check directly with their airline before travelling.
Disruption was also continuing at Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester. According to FlightRadar, 246 flights had been cancelled at Heathrow by 6am on Wednesday, while Gatwick passengers face 33 cancellations.
Heathrow Airport said flights were operating but warned delays and cancellations could continue while airlines moved aircraft and crew into the right places.
Heathrow Airport said: “Following yesterday’s NATS technical issue, flights are operating today, but some disruption may continue as airlines reposition aircraft and crew.”
It added: “Please check your flight status with your airline before travelling to the airport and only travel if your flight is confirmed to be operating.”
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London Gatwick Airport also said flights had resumed, but warned that its operations would take time to return to normal. The airport said passengers should continue to contact their airlines for information.
The problem affected airlines across the country. Ryanair said more than 65,000 of its passengers had been disrupted and that it had cancelled more than 50 scheduled flights.
ℹ️ Technical issue
Work is continuing to assist airlines and airports recover from today's disruption. This has been a very complex recovery and has created difficulties for the whole aviation network, from which it will take time to recover. (1/2) https://t.co/Me6GAY385V— NATS (@NATS) September 8, 2026
British Airways said it had been forced to cancel or divert more than 100 flights on Tuesday, affecting tens of thousands of customers.
Some passengers were left on aircraft for hours. Josie Donoghue had to leave her flight to Ireland after spending three hours on the runway at Gatwick.
Ms Donoghue said: “Getting through that airport was like trying to get out of Alcatraz. We were trapped in there. We were told we couldn’t get out until the flights were cancelled, and then eventually they allowed us to get out.”
Ms Donoghue said: “It’s just an absolute nightmare down there, it’s the only word I can use to describe it.”
Nats chief executive Martin Rolfe said he accepted responsibility for the incident when asked whether he was considering his position.
Mr Rolfe said: “I am the CEO of a piece of critical infrastructure, so it is my job to take responsibility for that.”
Mr Rolfe said: “What I absolutely take responsibility for is keeping people safe and delivering the best service we possibly can on a day like today.”
He said his focus was on resolving the issue, helping airlines and airports, and returning services to normal.
Nats said recovery work was continuing and warned that the disruption had affected the whole aviation network.
Nats said: “This has been a very complex recovery and has created difficulties for the whole aviation network, from which it will take time to recover.”
Ryanair called for Mr Rolfe to resign, referring to the latest problem and a previous Nats system failure in 2023.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander is due to speak to Mr Rolfe on Wednesday before addressing MPs in the Commons about the Civil Aviation Bill.
Airlines and airports advised passengers to check their flight status before leaving home, as disruption could continue while services recovered.
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