{
  "id": 6299240,
  "title": "Nearly 300 Flights Cancelled Across UK After Major Air Traffic Control System Glitch",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/08/nearly-300-flights-cancelled-across-uk-after-major-air-traffic",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-08T16:25:34.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Press Journal",
    "slug": "free-press-journal",
    "url": "https://www.freepressjournal.in/world/uk-flight-chaos-as-air-traffic-control-system-glitch-cancels-nearly-300-flights"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Nearly 300 flights were cancelled across the United Kingdom on Tuesday due to a technical issue affecting the country's air traffic control system, according to the flight monitoring website Flightradar24. The National Air Traffic Services (NATS) stated that engineers were working urgently to resolve the problem, which was impacting both departing and arriving flights. A subsequent update confirmed that the issue had been addressed, and NATS apologized for the disruptions.\n\nThe technical glitch affected flights operated by various airlines, including British Airways, EasyJet, KLM, and Lufthansa. Major airports in London, such as Heathrow, Stansted, and City, along with airports in Manchester, Birmingham, Scotland, and other regions, reported some disruptions. Passengers were advised to check their flight status with their respective airlines.\n\nEasyJet reported that some of its flights were unable to operate, causing delays across Europe. The website of Heathrow Airport indicated that many short-haul flights departing for European destinations were either canceled or delayed on Tuesday, while arriving flights were not impacted. The cause of the technical problem was not immediately clear.",
  "summary": "London: Nearly 300 flights were cancelled Tuesday because of a technical issue in the UK air traffic control system, the flight monitoring website Flightradar24 reported. Britain's National Air Traffic Services said earlier Tuesday afternoon that engineers were urgently working on the issue, which was affecting departing flights. In an update, it said it has “implemented a fix and our flight…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 4,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Live Mint",
        "title": "Major UK air traffic control failure disrupts flights: Heathrow, Manchester hit; EasyJet, British Airways warn of delays",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/08/major-uk-air-traffic-control-failure-disrupts-flights-heathrow",
        "published": "2026-09-08T15:49:10.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "CityNews",
        "title": "Hundreds of UK flights delayed, cancelled due to Heathrow Airport air traffic control technical issue",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/08/hundreds-of-uk-flights-delayed-cancelled-due-to-heathrow-airport-air",
        "published": "2026-09-08T20:13:54.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "ABC News AU",
        "title": "Australians sleep at Heathrow after UK air traffic control failure",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/08/australians-sleep-at-heathrow-after-uk-air-traffic-control-failure",
        "published": "2026-09-08T23:52:20.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}