Ryanair cancels Stansted Airport flights amid disruption

Ryanair said more than 65,000 of its passengers had been disrupted and it had cancelled more than 50 scheduled flights.

Flights to Toulouse, Gdansk, Wroclaw, and Katowice from Stansted were among those cancelled on Wednesday, September 9, though some services remain scheduled.

British Airways (BA) said it was forced to cancel or divert more than 100 flights on Tuesday which had impacted “tens of thousands of customers”.

Nats’ chief executive, Martin Rolfe has been under fire from Wizz Air and Ryanair after the latest issue which saw some passengers trapped on planes on runways for hours.

Thousands of Ryanair passengers have been affected by the disruption across UK airports (Image: Ellie Crabbe/PA Wire)

Neal McMahon, Ryanair’s chief operating officer, called on Mr Rolfe to resign, saying: “How many more failures do passengers have to suffer before overpaid failure Nats CEO Martin Rolfe accepts responsibility for his repeated mismanagement and resigns?

“Over three years after Nats’ catastrophic 2023 system meltdown, it’s clear that nothing has changed, with UK passengers once again suffering avoidable ATC (air traffic control) delays of up to eight hours today due a critical Nats ATC system failing.”

Stansted Airport has this morning taken to social media saying: "Following yesterday’s NATS air traffic control issue, the airport is operating as normal.

Stansted is one of a number of UK airports affected by the air traffic control disruption (Image: Stansted Airport)

"Those travelling should continue with their journey plans and check with their airline for the latest information on their flight, as usual.

"Thank your for your patience and understanding."

Martin Rolfe, chief executive officer at NATS, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: "We will be doing a very, very thorough and full investigation.

"We have at this point ruled out cyber. We don’t believe it was a cyber attack."

The disruption has continued today (Wednesday, September 9) as airlines manage the backlog, with further delays and cancellations reported at airports including Heathrow, Gatwick, and Manchester.

By 6am on Wednesday, 246 flights had been cancelled at Heathrow and 33 at Gatwick.

Stansted Airport has advised passengers to check with their airlines before travelling, as changes may still occur throughout the day despite the airport operating as normal.

Tens of thousands of passengers remain affected by the ongoing disruption.