# UK aviation disruption via NATS technical failure > Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/uk-aviation-disruption-via-nats-technical-failure > Updated: 2026-09-10T02:16:30.000Z. Sources: 307. Developments: 3. A technical failure in the flight data processing system of National Air Traffic Services (NATS) caused widespread disruption to air travel across the United Kingdom and parts of Europe. The outage, which began on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, resulted in more than 2,000 flight cancellations and affected approximately 300,000 to 330,000 passengers. While the initial technical issue was resolved on Tuesday afternoon, the operational fallout caused significant delays for aircraft and crews, creating knock-on effects across Europe, including Germany and Switzerland. Major hubs such as London Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Manchester, Birmingham, and Edinburgh, as well as Dublin, Ireland, were heavily impacted. Major carriers including British Airways, Ryanair, easyJet, and Wizz Air reported significant impacts. Passengers described scenes of “pandemonium,” citing long waits on aircraft and issues with baggage and information. Industry group Airlines UK warned that the financial impact on carriers could reach tens of millions of pounds, arguing that airlines should not bear the costs of infrastructure failures they cannot control. NATS CEO Martin Rolfe has dismissed suggestions of a cyberattack, attributing the event to a technical malfunction. He has committed to a “very, very thorough” investigation. In response, UK Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has summoned Rolfe for an urgent meeting and stated she does not believe the issue was unavoidable. The UK government has ordered the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to launch an independent investigation, with a report expected in six months. The CAA has indicated the disruption is likely to be classified as ‘extraordinary circumstances,’ meaning passengers are unlikely to receive compensation. ## Claims - Ryanair reported that over 65,000 passengers were affected by the disruption. (disputed by 17 sources) - FlightRadar24 reported over 1,000 flight cancellations. (disputed by 11 sources) - FlightRadar24 data indicated that over 600 flights were cancelled. (disputed by 10 sources) - British Airways was forced to cancel or divert more than 100 flights. (disputed by 6 sources) - More than 330,000 passengers were affected by the disruption. (disputed by 5 sources) - FlightRadar24 reported approximately 200 flight cancellations by late afternoon. (disputed by 3 sources) - British Airways cancelled nearly 550 flights due to the incident. (disputed by 2 sources) - NATS is investigating a technical issue causing disruption to flight departures. (corroborated by 50 sources) - NATS implemented a fix and systems are beginning to recover. (corroborated by 33 sources) - The technical failure primarily impacted departing flights, while arrivals were initially unaffected. (corroborated by 15 sources) - NATS warned that full recovery of flight schedules will take time due to the backlog of aircraft. (corroborated by 15 sources) ## Timeline ### 2026-09-10: NATS technical failure causes widespread UK flight cancellations A technical glitch in NATS's flight processing system caused over 2,000 flight cancellations in the UK, affecting 15 airports and hundreds of thousands of passengers. An independent investigation has been launc 14 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/nats-air-traffic-control-outage-causes-uk-flight-chaos ### 2026-09-08: Aviation disruptions hit UK and Brazil following technical failures Technical failures caused widespread aviation issues, including over 1,000 canceled flights in the UK due to air traffic control problems and a Gol flight returning to Confins, Brazil, following technical flaws 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/aviation-disruptions-hit-uk-and-brazil-following-technical-failures ### 2026-09-08: NATS air traffic control failure causes widespread UK flight cancellations A technical failure at NATS air traffic control caused approximately 2,000 flight cancellations and massive disruption across UK airports, affecting hundreds of thousands of passengers. 294 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/nats-technical-failure-disrupts-uk-and-irish-flight-departures --- Cite as: UK aviation disruption via NATS technical failure. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/uk-aviation-disruption-via-nats-technical-failure