{
  "id": 6894960,
  "title": "The aircraft might not be flying, but the certificate has gone on vacation",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/the-aircraft-might-not-be-flying-but-the-certificate-has-gone-on",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-09-12T09:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Register",
    "slug": "the-register",
    "url": "https://www.theregister.com/offbeat/2026/09/12/the-aircraft-might-not-be-flying-but-the-certificate-has-gone-on-vacation/5295622"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The cause of the air traffic control chaos in the UK during early September remains unknown, but a digital sign at Luton Airport seems to have gone on vacation. The sign, which typically displays passenger information, now appears to either have an incorrect system clock or a forgotten server certificate renewal. The issue is not a typical DNS problem, but a more severe one. The UK's air traffic control system has experienced a challenging week due to a glitch in the National Air Traffic Services (NATS), leading to thousands of flight cancellations and significant travel disruption for around 330,000 passengers. Luton Airport, a hub for Ryanair and easyJet, was affected along with many other airports. Despite the chaos, the airport's flight departed on time, and passengers received a cold adult beverage upon arrival. The good news is that information boards are now in a different time zone, or the person responsible for maintaining the server certificate has taken a vacation. The information provided on the board was not crucial to the passengers' travel experience.",
  "summary": "Information is not forthcoming from this screen",
  "key_points": [
    "Luton Airport information board displays incorrect time",
    "National Air Traffic Services glitch causes chaos",
    "Server certificate renewal may be the cause"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Register Science",
        "title": "The aircraft might not be flying, but the certificate has gone on vacation",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/12/the-aircraft-might-not-be-flying-but-the-certificate-has-gone-on-6899223",
        "published": "2026-09-12T09:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "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."
}