BA Flight On Despite UK Air Traffic Control Glitch

Airline passengers are facing what is being called “widespread flight disruption” by the BBC, following a technical problem at the United Kingdom’s air traffic control centre, however the Bermuda flight has left the United Kingdom.

A British Airways spokesperson said, “All airlines at Heathrow and Gatwick airports have been affected today by a major air traffic control failure in the UK. However, BA 2233 has left Gatwick Airport and is due to arrive in Bermuda at 7.40pm.

“The outbound flight to London, BA 2232, is scheduled to depart this evening at 9.20 pm. Passengers are advised to check ba.com for up to date information.”

According to a report by the BBC, “The government said the scale of the disruption was “unacceptable” and said it had asked for a “full explanation” of what had gone wrong.

“This included delays at Heathrow and Gatwick, where departing flights were grounded for a time. Other UK airports reported knock-on effects.”

“It comes a year after a telephone glitch at the Hampshire control room caused huge disruption – one of a number of technical hitches to hit the part-privatised Nation Air Traffic Services [NATS] since the centre opened in 2002.”

A CNN report indicates that the technical problem has been fixed, though flights continue to be delayed, saying, “The air traffic control system for London airspace has been restored after a technical failure, the UK air traffic management company NATS said Friday, but travelers can expect disruptions and flight cancellations.”

“We are in the process of returning to normal operations. We apologize for any delays and the inconvenience this may have caused,” NATS said.

“It later issued a release saying that it had ruled out a power outage as a cause of the fault, which resulted in the temporary closure of London’s airspace.”

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