Air traffic control disruption in UK due to inaccurate flight information

author: FutureCar Staff    

The UK's air traffic control chief has identified "incorrect" flight data as the cause of the massive disruption that affected thousands of passengers. The disruption resulted in the cancellation of hundreds of flights to and from the country, with ongoing effects felt on Wednesday. Martin Rolfe, the chief executive of National Air Traffic Services (NATS), stated that an initial investigation revealed that the failure was caused by flight data that their system could not interpret. He also reiterated that the disruption was not caused by a cyber-attack.

Rolfe explained that the issue was related to the flight data received by NATS. As a precautionary measure, their systems suspended automatic processing to prevent the presentation of incorrect safety-related information to air traffic controllers or the impact of the rest of the air traffic system. Although the investigation is ongoing, there are no indications of a cyber-attack. Rolfe assured passengers that since Monday afternoon, all NATS systems have been running normally. However, the knock-on effects of the disruption continue to be felt during the busy summer holiday travel period.

While some reports suggest that the chaos may have been caused by a misfiled flight plan from a French airline, Rolfe did not confirm or deny these reports. He mentioned that the issue could be related to a single flight plan and emphasized that a thorough investigation is underway to understand the root cause. NATS, responsible for handling 2 million flights annually to and from the UK, has identified the issue in the system's response to incorrect data and is implementing measures to prevent similar delays in the future.

NATS is collaborating with the UK's Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on the investigation, and the findings of the report will be made public. As a result of the incorrect data, flight plans had to be uploaded manually, leading to the slowdown or cancellation of air traffic across the UK. Thousands of passengers were affected, with some forced to spend the night at airports worldwide while waiting for rescheduled flights.

An analysis of flight data revealed that 281 flights, including departures and arrivals, were cancelled on Tuesday at the UK's six busiest airports. Gatwick, Heathrow, Manchester, Stansted, Luton, and Edinburgh airports were particularly affected. In response to the backlog, the UK's Department of Transport approved night flying, which is usually restricted, at all UK airports it regulates. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimates that the system failure will cost airlines GBP 100 million.

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FutureCar Staff