Air traffic control – latest: Airlines demand compensation reform as NATS outage sees 2,000 flights cancelled

There were 1,585 flights cancelled on Monday, while 345 were axed on Tuesday

Simon Calder on air traffic control chaos - how to get refunds, compensation

Airlines have demanded compensation reform as air traffic control chaos has seen 2,000 flights cancelled across Europe.

More than 2,000 flights have been cancelled in the last three days, following an hours-long air control system failure that sent flight schedules into meltdown and left thousands of travellers stranded.

Industry body Iata projected a £100m loss in revenue for airlines as customers reclaim the costs for food, accommodation and alternative travel, urging the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to review the compensation system and make the National Air Traffic Services (Nats) contribute to the cost.

“It’s very unfair because the air traffic control system, which was at the heart of this failure, doesn’t pay a single penny”, Willie Walsh, the director general of Iata, told the BBC.

He added that the UK should “look at the way passenger compensation is dealt with to ensure that the people who are responsible for the delays and cancellations ultimately bear the costs.”

The UK’s air traffic control boss, Martin Rolfe, said the glitch – caused by “dodgy” flight data – has been fixed and will not occur in the future.

Have you been affected by delays? If so email maanya.sachdeva@independent.co.uk

Key Points

• French airline’s ‘dodgy flight plan’ set system meltdown in motion, sources tell Simon Calder
• Technical issue ‘identified and remedied’, National Air Traffic Services says
• Faulty data hitting air traffic control ‘demonstrates huge weakness’, ex-BA boss says
• UK air traffic control meltdown fault won’t happen again, Nats chief says

[30 August 2023 14:00 · Eleanor Noyce]

In pictures: Passengers stranded as more than 2,000 flights cancelled

An “unusual piece of data” caused widespread flight disruption, an air traffic control (ATC) boss said, as airlines are under growing pressure over their treatment of passengers waiting in airports across Europe to return home.

Many UK holidaymakers are stranded overseas after around 2,000 flights were cancelled because of the issue.

There is speculation the ATC failure was caused by a French airline submitting a flight plan to National Air Traffic Services (Nats) in the wrong format.

Downing Street did not rule out that possibility, while Nats declined to comment on whether that was what happened.

Travellers have been cautioned that flight disturbances might endure for several days (EPA)

26-year-old drama student Matthew Creed, from Harthill in Scotland, has been sleeping at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam after his flight with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines to Edinburgh was cancelled (PA)

A departure board at Heathrow Airport as disruption from air traffic control issues continues across the UK and Ireland (PA)

A technical breakdown in the UK’s air traffic control system resulted in hundreds of thousands of passengers being either stuck or experiencing delays during the summer bank holiday (EPA)

Passengers queue at Heathrow Airport, 30 August 2023 (EPA)

[30 August 2023 14:12 · Eleanor Noyce]

Lib Dems: Air Traffic control boss ‘should not receive any bonuses unless affected passengers receive compensation’

Air Traffic control boss Martin Rolfe should not be entitled to any bonuses unless passengers are fully compensated for missed flights following the travel chaos that has struck UK airports this week, say the Lib Dems.

This year, Mr Rolfe’s basic annual pay of £477,000 was boosted by £281,000 in a yearly bonus, alongside pension bonuses and a backdated £555,000 on a long-term incentive plan. This comes on top of a £1.2m bonus he received last year.

Liberal Democrat Transport spokesperson, Wera Hobhouse MP said: “No-one should be left out of pocket through no fault of their own. Martin Rolfe should not receive any bonuses unless affected passengers receive compensation from those responsible.

“Ministers have led a pitiful response to this disruption, with thousands of families’ holidays ruined and left to pick up the bill for other people’s failings.

“That has to change. Until it does, bonuses leading to million pound pay packets need to be withheld. Anything less would be a slap in the face to all those caught up in this week’s mayhem.”

[30 August 2023 14:30 · Eleanor Noyce]

Caught in the air traffic control nightmare? Your rights when flights go wrong

Hundreds of thousands of passengers booked to travel to or from the UK have had their flights cancelled or delayed after the air-traffic control system was hit by a technical issue.

The National Air Traffic Services (NATS), the country’s leading provider of air traffic control services, said it had applied traffic flow restrictions on Monday to maintain safety.

The group announced later that the issue had been “identified and remedied”. But passengers are still facing travel chaos, with more than 500 flights already cancelled and many more delayed.

Here, The Independent’s travel expert Simon Calder explains what you can do if you are caught up in the chaos.

[30 August 2023 14:47 · Eleanor Noyce]

Simon Calder: What is causing the air traffic control chaos? The authorities have some explaining to do

It’s the £80m question: why are airlines facing enormous financial losses while their passengers endure extreme distress?

The last week of August is a time of high demand for air travel, especially from returning holidaymakers. Because of the UK’s limited airport infrastructure, especially in southeast England, there is precious little slack in the system: Heathrow and Gatwick are, respectively, the busiest two-runway and single-runway airports in the world.

So the UK’s normally well-regarded air traffic control (ATC) system needed to be working perfectly on bank holiday Monday.

At 11.24am on Monday I began to get reports from airlines of an “ATC failure affecting entire UK airspace”. Within 15 minutes I asked Nats, the national air traffic service, what was happening.

Simon Calder reports:

[30 August 2023 15:05 · Eleanor Noyce]

Gatwick profits leap despite ‘challenges’ across Europe

Gatwick Airport has seen half-year profits jump by nearly two-thirds as travel demand surged, but said air traffic remains below pre-pandemic levels due to “challenging” restrictions across Europe.

The airport, near Crawley in West Sussex, reported pre-tax profits of £100.2 million for the six months to June 30, up 65% from £60.7 million a year ago.

Underlying earnings rose 59% to £235.7 million from £148.3 million a year ago, with early 2022 still affected by pandemic travel restrictions.

The group said air traffic remained below levels seen in 2019 before Covid-19 struck, at 86%, as it faced a “challenging” operating environment in Europe, beset by air traffic control (ATC) restrictions and industrial action, causing cancellations and delays across airlines.

Holly Williams reports:

[30 August 2023 15:25 · Eleanor Noyce]

Air traffic control chaos a ‘catastrophic disaster’ for aviation industry, expert says

Experts believe that the air traffic control chaos sweeping Europe could be a “catastrophic disaster” for the aviation industry.

“Despite the technical error now being resolved, does this leave more questions than answers? How secure is the air traffic system and how safe is it with more flights taking to the skies than ever before”, tourism and aviation specialist Beverley Boden told The Mirror.

“There is little consolation from Nats, a global leader in air traffic management, who many will look to to respond to the crisis as to why and how this happened. This catastrophic and costly error requires a full enquiry, as many passengers will seek compensation while airline bosses look to government for answers”, she added.

[30 August 2023 15:45 · Eleanor Noyce]

Public services ‘should be in public ownership’, says researcher of air traffic control chaos

A left-wing writer and researcher has said that public services “should be in public ownership” following the air traffic control chaos.

“Britain’s air traffic control system collapsed on the busiest day of the year because once again a private company prioritised huge bosses’ salaries and shareholder dividends over basic infrastructural investment”, David Osland, former Labour Research Department and Labour Briefing contributor, tweeted.

“Public services should be in public ownership”, Mr Osland added.

[30 August 2023 16:05 · Eleanor Noyce]

Couple’s hope for compensation from easyJet for disruption after rejection

A sales executive who estimated he and his wife were “about £2,200 out of pocket” after their flight from Crete was cancelled due to an air traffic control glitch are hopeful about receiving compensation after initially being denied by easyJet.

Tom Perry, 31, told the PA news agency on Tuesday that their easyJet flights for the night before from Heraklion airport to Luton had been cancelled due to the glitch.

The couple, based in Cornwall, were offered new easyJet flights home for the following Monday, free of charge, which they accepted as “that was the only [direct flights] available” at the time, Mr Perry said.

Mr Perry said: “Then, about an hour later, I looked online and found one that goes from Crete airport this coming Friday with Jet2, so we booked with them to go back to Bristol.”

The couple paid £1,172 for the Friday flights and requested a refund for the Monday return flights the couple were no longer availing of, but easyJet had declined.

The flight cancellation forced the couple to pay for an extended stay at their accommodation in Sissi for around £250, a parking space for additional days at Luton airport for around £120, and an extended stay for their dog at a kennel.

Mr Perry’s wife, Ella, 27, is an NHS nurse who could “lose pay or annual leave”, he said.

He said he “spent six hours on live chats and calls, albeit probably 4.5 hours was trying to get through” and easyJet were “refusing to refund”.

On Wednesday morning, easyJet provided the couple with the opportunity to apply for compensation for the expenses they have accumulated due to the flight disruption.

Mr Perry told the PA news agency: “Obviously I’m not going to get my hopes up too much until it comes through but yeah, obviously, it does make a difference.

“The lady on the phone today has been really, really helpful, but what I can’t quite understand is why we weren’t offered this option yesterday.”

(PA)

[30 August 2023 16:20 · Eleanor Noyce]

Simon Calder explains how travellers can get money back in air traffic control chaos

The Independent’s Travel Correspondent Simon Calder has outlined how stranded Brits can get money back from airlines following the air traffic control failure.

Simon has clarified the difference between compensation and reimbursements.

He said: “If your flight is cancelled, the airline has a strict obligation to deliver a duty of care.

“This includes getting you back as soon as possible, getting you a hotel room, getting your meals. All of that the airline has to do and if they’re not booking a hotel for you, then you keep the receipts and claim it back.

“But, nobody is going to get cash compensation because it’s clearly not the airline’s fault.”

Watch:

[30 August 2023 16:40 · Eleanor Noyce]

ICYMI: EasyJet to send ‘rescue flights’ for passengers stranded by air traffic control chaos

Britain’s largest budget airline will send “rescue flights” for passengers stranded abroad by air traffic control chaos.

As hundreds of flights were cancelled on Tuesday, easyJet confirmed it would operate five repatriation flights to London Gatwick over the coming days.

The rescue flights will operate from Palma and Faro on 30 August, Tenerife and Enfidha on 31 August and Rhodes on 1 September.

More than 1,200 flights to, from and within the UK were grounded by the failure at the national air traffic provider Nats, with around 200,000 people sleeping at airports overnight.