Passengers flying to, from or within Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England faced delays and cancellations on Monday 21 September after a technical problem at the UK’s national air traffic service. Nats said engineers were called in to deal with an issue at the Prestwick Centre in South Ayrshire, which handles air traffic control across Scotland and the north of England. Nats said the problem was later fixed and it was working with airports and airlines to safely lift air traffic restrictions, but delays continued through the day.
It is the second major disruption at UK airports in a few weeks. Nats said the issue was not related to a software defect that led to the cancellation of about 2,000 flights across the UK earlier this month.
What happened
Delays were reported at Glasgow, Prestwick and Edinburgh, and also at Manchester, Newcastle, Belfast and East Midlands. The Manchester Airports Group said some flights were delayed by up to an hour. At Belfast City Airport several flights were cancelled, including services to and from Manchester, Amsterdam and London City, and later flights to Glasgow and Edinburgh. Dundee and Benbecula airports confirmed they were affected, and Highlands and Islands Airports said schedules were disrupted across its 11 regional airports. Ryanair said it had been told of a Nats “equipment failure” affecting airspace above Scotland and northern England. Nats said airports south of Manchester were broadly unaffected.
UK Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander called the problems “deeply frustrating for passengers after the previous issue”, and Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney said the Scottish Government would engage with Nats to make sure the necessary resilience is in place. The operator of Glasgow, Aberdeen and Southampton airports noted that this was the second time in as many weeks that a Nats technical issue had significantly affected its services.
Your rights if a flight is cancelled
The BBC’s guide to passenger rights, based on UK law and the Civil Aviation Authority’s advice, sets out the following. The rules generally apply if you fly from a UK airport on any airline, arrive at a UK airport on an EU or UK airline, or arrive at an EU airport on a UK airline.
- Refund or rerouting. If your flight is cancelled you can choose a refund for the unused part of your ticket or an alternative flight at no extra cost, regardless of how far ahead it was cancelled. If another airline or another mode of transport gets you there significantly sooner, you can ask to be put on that.
- Care. Airlines must provide a reasonable amount of food and drink, a way to communicate, free hotel accommodation if you must stay overnight, and transport to and from it. If the airline cannot arrange this, you can organise it yourself and claim the cost back later. The CAA advises keeping receipts and not spending more than necessary.
- Long delays. You are entitled to the same care if your flight is delayed by more than two hours on a short-haul flight, three hours on a medium-haul flight or four hours on a long-haul flight. If you are delayed more than five hours and no longer want to travel, you can get a full refund.
- Package holidays. If you booked a package holiday with an ABTA member and your flight is cancelled, you are entitled to a suitable alternative flight or a full refund.
Can you claim compensation?
Not for this type of disruption. Extra compensation is payable only when the airline is at fault. Problems classed as “extraordinary circumstances”, including air traffic control issues, bad weather, strikes by airport staff or conflict, do not qualify. When an airline is at fault and gives less than two weeks’ notice of a cancellation, compensation of up to £220 per person applies on flights under 1,500km, up to £350 on 1,500–3,500km flights and up to £520 on longer flights.
Other losses
For additional costs such as unused accommodation, a claim may be possible through the credit card provider you paid with, and then through travel insurance, although cover varies and policy details matter. Airlines will not refund lost earnings and insurers do not usually cover them either. If you will be late for work, you should tell your employer and agree how to handle the absence; employers have no obligation to pay you unless your contract says so.
What to do now
- Check your flight status with your airline before travelling to the airport, as Nats has advised.
- Ask your airline for your choice of refund or rebooking in writing where you can.
- Keep every receipt for food, accommodation and transport.
- Contact your insurer and card provider early if you have extra costs.
