UK airport chaos live updates: Ryanair boss calls for air traffic chief to resign over Gatwick flight delays
Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has issued fresh calls for the resignation of the chief executive of air traffic control (ATC) provider Nats.
Mr O’Leary urged Martin Rolfe to step down and “allow someone competent” to take over after flights were disrupted at Gatwick Airport on Sunday due to “Nats staff shortages”.
Analysis of data from flight tracking website FlightRadar24 shows 49 departures and 51 arrivals were cancelled on Sunday between 3pm and midnight, affecting more than 16,000 passengers.
“Ryanair again calls on UK Nats chief executive Martin Rolfe to step down and allow someone competent to run an efficient UK ATC service, which airlines and passengers are entitled to expect,” Mr O’Leary said.
“If he won’t go, then (new Transport Secretary) Louise Haigh should sack him.”
Around 3,500 passengers expecting to fly to or from London Gatwick on 20 flights on Monday morning have been grounded. Most are booked on easyJet, which cancelled its first flight of the day, to Ibiza, and six others including links to Naples and Nice.
Passengers were told the cause was “air-traffic control restrictions” outside the airline’s control.
Key Points
Ryanair boss calls for air traffic control chief to resign
Full report: UK flight chaos continues with dozens more cancellations at Gatwick and Heathrow
What flights have been delayed or cancelled?
Air passenger compensation: What are your rights when a flight goes wrong?
Monday 9 September 2024 10:02 , Jabed Ahmed
The rules are tangled and depend on where your flight begins and the airline involved. Sometimes you may be entitled to a hotel room, all meals and hundreds of pounds in cash; in other circumstances you may just have to put a dismal aviation episode down to expensive experience, and see if your travel insurer can help.
For flights from the UK and EU airports (as well as those in the wider EEA), European air passengers’ rights rules prevail. These were introduced in 2006 and are known as EC261. They were devised to require airlines to do the right thing for their passengers.
They specify the care and compensation you can expect when you are denied boarding despite showing up on time, or when your plane is delayed or cancelled.
Whatever the cause of a cancellation, and regardless of the amount of notice that is given, you can insist upon replacement transport: the airline must get you to your destination as soon as possible if that is what you want.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority says that means if a flight is available on the original day of travel, the passenger must be booked on it – even if it is on a rival carrier.
What to do if an airline says it can’t deliver an alternative flight today
Monday 9 September 2024 10:23 , Jabed Ahmed
If the cancelling carrier does not carry out its duty to rebook you as soon as possible, or you find it impossible to contact the airline, you can make your own arrangements in the expectation that reasonable costs will be refunded.
That means booking the cheapest alternative ticket possible, staying in a budget hotel if there is one, etc. You must keep all your receipts, of course. If the alternative travel is expensive (eg only business class is available) you will need to be able to show evidence of that – such as screenshotss showing the limited availability.
Can you get cash compensation if your flight is cancelled or delayed?
Monday 9 September 2024 10:34 , Jabed Ahmed
You are due hundreds of pounds in compensation if the airline:
gives you less than 14 days’ notice of the cancellation and cannot find an alternative way to get you to your destination close to the original departure and arrival times, and
is responsible for the cancellation – ie it cannot plead “extraordinary circumstances” as causing the grounding of the flight.
The payment varies according to the length of the trip. There is also a slight variation depending on whether the flight starts in the UK or the EU. (After Brexit the UK retained largely identical legislation but with amounts in sterling, not euros).
Under 1,500km, for example London to Nice: £220 or €250
1,500-3,500km, such as Manchester-Malaga: £350 or €400
Above 3,500km, e g Birmingham-Dubai: £520 or €600
If the airline can get you to your destination within two/three/four hours respectively of the expected time, the compensation is halved.
Simon Calder: Your best strategy if your British Airways flight is cancelled
Monday 9 September 2024 10:47 , Jabed Ahmed
Your best strategy if your British Airways flight is cancelled
Ryanair boss calls for air traffic control chief to resign
Monday 9 September 2024 20:00 , Alex Croft
Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has issued fresh calls for the resignation of the chief executive of air traffic control (ATC) provider Nats.
Mr O’Leary urged Martin Rolfe to step down and “allow someone competent” to take over after flights were disrupted at Gatwick Airport on Sunday due to “Nats staff shortages”.
Mr O’Leary said: “UK Nats staff shortages caused multiple flight delays and cancellations at Gatwick Airport yesterday, Sunday September 8.
“This is the latest in a long line of cock-ups by UK Nats, which has yet again disrupted multiple flights and thousands of passengers at Gatwick. Airlines and passengers deserve better.
“Ryanair again calls on UK Nats chief executive Martin Rolfe to step down and allow someone competent to run an efficient UK ATC service, which airlines and passengers are entitled to expect.
“If he won’t go, then (new Transport Secretary) Louise Haigh should sack him.”
How can you claim if your flight is cancelled or delayed?
Monday 9 September 2024 11:13 , Jabed Ahmed
Each airline should enable you to fill out an online form, but these are sometimes difficult to track down. The pages for Ryanair and British Airways is below:
British Airways (click on “Submit a new claim”)
The payment must be made by cheque or bank transfer, except if the airline obtains the prior signed agreement of the passenger to pay with vouchers for future travel.
For example, an airline might offer a 30 per cent uplift if you accept vouchers that are valid for a year – so a choice between £350 in cash or £455-worth of flights.
What if you have a justifiable claim but it is turned down?
Monday 9 September 2024 11:24 , Jabed Ahmed
You can go to a claims handler such as AirHelp, but be warned that the company will keep between 35 and 50 per cent of any payout (the higher amount if court action is involved).
Another course of action is alternative dispute resolution, but The Independent has serious reservations about some of the decisions of these arbiters.
Writing a Letter Before Action – warning that you will go to Money Claim Online if you do not get a positive response within two weeks – is worth trying, so long as you follow through. For a £350 claim the fee is £50, which is refunded if you win.
Since Brexit UK citizens no longer have access to the European Small Claims Procedure, so if you are chasing compensation on a flight originating in the EU it might be easiest to go through a claims handler.
Flight delays and cancellations caused by poor weather and ATC restrictions
Monday 9 September 2024 11:25 , Jabed Ahmed
Aviation analytics firm Cirium said a combination of poor weather and ATC restrictions led to a surge in cancellations last week.
A total of 427 departures from UK airports were cancelled.
That represented 2 per cent of all scheduled departures, and was a three-fold increase from the previous week.
Heathrow, the UK’s busiest airport, saw the most cancellations with 165, followed by Gatwick (87) and London City (36).
How to spot a social media travel scam – and avoid losing hundreds of pounds
Monday 9 September 2024 11:37 , Jabed Ahmed
Criminals are targeting frustrated travellers on social media by setting up scam airline accounts and pretending to offer help.
How to spot a travel scam on social media – and avoid losing hundreds of pounds
Aviation minister commits to tackling ‘long overdue’ airspace modernisation
Monday 9 September 2024 12:03 , Jabed Ahmed
Tackling issues with Europe’s airspace is “long overdue” and will speed up flights, a minister has said.
Aviation minister Mike Kane said UK airspace management is “an analogue system in a digital age”, and improvements will lead to “quicker, quieter, cleaner flights”.
He was speaking at an easyJet sustainability event at Cranfield University, where the airline said inefficient use of airspace contributes to increases in fuel consumption, carbon emissions and flight times.
The carrier described the problem as a “universal issue” across the whole of Europe, but the “greatest inefficiencies” for its operations are in the UK.
Among the causes are aircraft being required to climb in steps after take-off, complex routing, and delaying descents to manage the workload of air traffic control (ATC) staff.
Ryanair says one in seven flights this morning delayed due to air-traffic control staff shortage
Monday 9 September 2024 12:07 , Jabed Ahmed
Ryanair, Europe’s biggest budget airline, has once again railed against “repeated ATC [air-traffic control] staff shortages across Europe”.
The carrier “apologised to its passengers for the excessive flight delays caused by European ATC staff shortages today, Monday 9 September, which is affecting all European airlines.
“ATC services, which have had the benefit of no French ATC strike disruption this summer, continue to underperform (despite flight volumes being 5 per cent behind 2019 levels) with repeated ‘staff shortages’.
“On Monday 09 Sep, 14 per cent of Ryanair’s first wave departures (83 of 578 aircraft) were delayed due to ATC ‘staff shortages’. These repeated flight delays due to ATC mismanagement are unacceptable.
“We apologise to our passengers for these repeated ATC flight delays which are deeply regrettable but beyond Ryanair’s control.”
What are your rights when a flight goes wrong?
Monday 9 September 2024 12:19 , Jabed Ahmed
What are your rights when a flight goes wrong?
Gatwick says it will work closely with Nats to provide passengers and airlines with a good service
Monday 9 September 2024 12:39 , Jabed Ahmed
A Gatwick spokeswoman said Nats has “successfully increased the number of air traffic controllers over recent months”.
She went on: “So far this year, London Gatwick has safely handled more than 170,000 flights through Nats, a 4% increase on last year.
“The Nats service has been fully available more than 99.6% of the time, operating 24 hours a day.
“London Gatwick typically has 800 or more flight movements a day from a single runway.
“We will continue to work closely with the Nats leadership team to provide passengers and airlines with a good service.
“London Gatwick would like to apologise to any passengers who experienced disruption yesterday.”
British Airways blames air-traffic control restrictions and bad weather for weekend cancellations
Monday 9 September 2024 13:01 , Simon Calder
After cancelling more than 250 flights between Friday and Monday – affecting around 40,000 passengers – British Airways has issued a statement pinning responsibility on air-traffic control problems across Europe.
A BA spokesperson said: “We operate hundreds of flights every day without disruption, successfully getting tens of thousands of our customers to where they need to be.
“Along with other airlines, we’ve had to make some small adjustments to our schedule because of air traffic control restrictions caused by adverse weather.
“Whilst the vast majority of our customers will be unaffected, we apologise for any inconvenience caused and our teams are working hard to help get journeys back on track.”
Under passengers’ rights rules, British Airways must provide alternative flights as soon as possible and, if necessary, hotel rooms.
Simon Calder explains what passengers need to know when their flight is cancelled
Monday 9 September 2024 13:27 , Jabed Ahmed
Writing in his latest The Man Who Pays His Way column, travel correspondent Simon Calder explains what passengers need to know when their flight is cancelled: basically, if you need to get to your destination quickly, you may need to pay for a new flight and reclaim later.
While under European air passengers’ rights rules airlines are supposed to buy a new flight if necessary, this often does not happen.
The reason comes down to two factors: complexity and complacency.
Complexity: the two most obvious alternatives to British Airways are easyJet and Ryanair. BA can delve into the reservations systems for “legacy” carriers such as KLM and Lufthansa and find replacement flights for stranded passengers, often involving connections in Amsterdam, Frankfurt or Munich. But neither of the big low-cost airlines has any interest in opening up their inventory to other carriers – figuring, probably correctly, that they will Hoover up distressed passengers anyway.
British Airways could in theory set up an operation to find alternative flights manually for stranded travellers. But since during this dose of disruption average “hold times” on the phone lines were close to an hour, the chances of BA funding hundreds more staff to deal with the odd bout of disruption looks slim.
Complacency: All the UK airlines know that the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is unlikely to take action if they fail in their obligation to provide the “best fit” replacement for a cancelled flight. The CAA has robustly rapped the knuckles of Wizz Air, but that was for failing to deal properly with the “pay and reclaim” process – leaving some passengers many hundreds of pounds out of pocket. But the aviation regulator looks content to allow airlines to shrug off their duty of care, so long as they eventually stump up for the costs of self-service rescue.
What flights have been delayed or cancelled?
Monday 9 September 2024 13:50 , Jabed Ahmed
Around 3,500 passengers expecting to fly to or from London Gatwick on 20 flights on Monday morning have been grounded.
Most are booked on EasyJet, which cancelled its first flight of the day, to Ibiza, and six others including links to Naples and Nice.
Passengers were told the cause was “air-traffic control restrictions” and outside the airline’s control.
The cancellations are in addition to 64 flights grounded by easyJet on Sunday due to short-notice staff shortage in Gatwick’s control tower.
EasyJet said on Sunday evening that it was “extremely disappointed that customers are once again being impacted by this”.
In terms of the sheer scale of disruption over one of the busiest weekends of the year, British Airways passengers trying to fly to or from London Heathrow have been worst affected.
Between Friday and Sunday BA cancelled 240 flights, affecting around 40,000 passengers. On Monday the airline had grounded a further eight departures and arrivals at Heathrow, plus six at Gatwick.
Full report: UK flight chaos continues with dozens more cancellations at Gatwick and Heathrow
Monday 9 September 2024 14:09 , Jabed Ahmed
Flight chaos continues with dozens more cancellations at Gatwick and Heathrow
Nearly 50 departures and 51 arrivals were cancelled on Sunday from Gatwick
Monday 9 September 2024 14:32 , Jabed Ahmed
Gatwick flights have frequently been disrupted due to ATC staffing issues.
Analysis of data from flight tracking website FlightRadar24 shows 49 departures and 51 arrivals were cancelled on Sunday between 3pm and midnight, affecting more than 16,000 passengers.
Many other flights were delayed.
Easyjet blames UK air-traffic control for delays
Monday 9 September 2024 14:51 , Jabed Ahmed
A spokesperson for easyJet said: “The knock-on impact of Nats air traffic control staffing shortages at Gatwick yesterday has resulted in some flights to and from Gatwick Airport this morning being unable to operate.
“We are extremely disappointed that customers are once again being impacted by this and while this is outside of our control, we are sorry for the inconvenience caused.
“We are doing all possible to minimise the impact of the disruption and have notified those on cancelled flights of their options to rebook or receive a refund and are providing hotel accommodation and meals where required.”
How can you claim if your flight is cancelled or delayed?
Monday 9 September 2024 15:29 , Jabed Ahmed
Each airline should enable you to fill out an online form, but these are sometimes difficult to track down. The pages for Ryanair and British Airways is below:
British Airways (click on “Submit a new claim”)
The payment must be made by cheque or bank transfer, except if the airline obtains the prior signed agreement of the passenger to pay with vouchers for future travel.
For example, an airline might offer a 30 per cent uplift if you accept vouchers that are valid for a year – so a choice between £350 in cash or £455-worth of flights.
Nats says it ‘inherited’ staff shortage when appointed by Gatwick in 2022
Monday 9 September 2024 15:33 , Jabed Ahmed
A spokesperson for Nats said: “We are very sorry for yesterday’s disruption which was also disappointing for our highly professional Gatwick team, who are doing all they can to provide a seamless 24/7 service.
“When Gatwick appointed us to improve their ATC performance and resilience, everyone knew we had inherited a staff shortage that would take time to fix. Controllers must be trained specifically for the Gatwick airport operation and it takes up to 2 years to be certified to safely control aircraft at the world’s busiest single runway airport.
“We have a full training pipeline in place and this year we have more controllers than last year. We are still not as resilient as we need to be, though, which means that short notice absence has an immediate impact on the operation.
“This summer, since April, we have managed more than 124,000 flights at Gatwick, 2.7% up on last year and our service has been fully available over 99% of the time, 24 hours per day, every day.
“Any cancellation is one too many. On the rare occasions when we have had to reduce the flow of traffic at Gatwick, we have done everything possible to minimise disruption.”
Simon Calder: Your best strategy if your British Airways flight is cancelled
Monday 9 September 2024 16:01 , Jabed Ahmed
Your best strategy if your British Airways flight is cancelled
Flight delays and cancellations caused by poor weather and ATC restrictions
Monday 9 September 2024 16:29 , Jabed Ahmed
Aviation analytics firm Cirium said a combination of poor weather and ATC restrictions led to a surge in cancellations last week.
A total of 427 departures from UK airports were cancelled.
That represented 2 per cent of all scheduled departures, and was a three-fold increase from the previous week.
Heathrow, the UK’s busiest airport, saw the most cancellations with 165, followed by Gatwick (87) and London City (36).
What flights have been delayed or cancelled?
Monday 9 September 2024 17:32 , Alex Croft
Around 3,500 passengers expecting to fly to or from London Gatwick on 20 flights on Monday morning have been grounded.
Most are booked on EasyJet, which cancelled its first flight of the day, to Ibiza, and six others including links to Naples and Nice.
Passengers were told the cause was “air-traffic control restrictions” and outside the airline’s control.
The cancellations are in addition to 64 flights grounded by easyJet on Sunday due to short-notice staff shortage in Gatwick’s control tower.
EasyJet said on Sunday evening that it was “extremely disappointed that customers are once again being impacted by this”.
In terms of the sheer scale of disruption over one of the busiest weekends of the year, British Airways passengers trying to fly to or from London Heathrow have been worst affected.
Between Friday and Sunday BA cancelled 240 flights, affecting around 40,000 passengers. On Monday the airline had grounded a further eight departures and arrivals at Heathrow, plus six at Gatwick.
Monday 9 September 2024 18:05 , Alex Croft
How can you claim if your flight is cancelled or delayed?
Each airline should enable you to fill out an online form, but these are sometimes difficult to track down. The pages for Ryanair, British Airways and EasyJet are below:
British Airways (click on “Submit a new claim”)
The payment must be made by cheque or bank transfer, except if the airline obtains the prior signed agreement of the passenger to pay with vouchers for future travel.
For example, an airline might offer a 30 per cent uplift if you accept vouchers that are valid for a year – so a choice between £350 in cash or £455-worth of flights.
Aviation minister commits to tackling ‘long overdue’ airspace modernisation
Monday 9 September 2024 18:41 , Alex Croft
Tackling issues with Europe’s airspace is “long overdue” and will speed up flights, a minister has said.
Aviation minister Mike Kane said UK airspace management is “an analogue system in a digital age”, and improvements will lead to “quicker, quieter, cleaner flights”.
He was speaking at an easyJet sustainability event at Cranfield University, where the airline said inefficient use of airspace contributes to increases in fuel consumption, carbon emissions and flight times.
The carrier described the problem as a “universal issue” across the whole of Europe, but the “greatest inefficiencies” for its operations are in the UK.
Among the causes are aircraft being required to climb in steps after take-off, complex routing, and delaying descents to manage the workload of air traffic control (ATC) staff.
Gatwick says it will work closely with Nats to provide passengers and airlines with a good service
Monday 9 September 2024 19:13 , Alex Croft
A Gatwick spokeswoman said Nats has “successfully increased the number of air traffic controllers over recent months”.
She went on: “So far this year, London Gatwick has safely handled more than 170,000 flights through Nats, a 4% increase on last year.
“The Nats service has been fully available more than 99.6% of the time, operating 24 hours a day.
“London Gatwick typically has 800 or more flight movements a day from a single runway.
“We will continue to work closely with the Nats leadership team to provide passengers and airlines with a good service.
“London Gatwick would like to apologise to any passengers who experienced disruption yesterday.”
Simon Calder explains what passengers need to know when their flight is cancelled
Monday 9 September 2024 19:49 , Alex Croft
Writing in his latest The Man Who Pays His Way column, travel correspondent Simon Calder explains what passengers need to know when their flight is cancelled: basically, if you need to get to your destination quickly, you may need to pay for a new flight and reclaim later.
While under European air passengers’ rights rules airlines are supposed to buy a new flight if necessary, this often does not happen.
The reason comes down to two factors: complexity and complacency.
Complexity: the two most obvious alternatives to British Airways are easyJet and Ryanair. BA can delve into the reservations systems for “legacy” carriers such as KLM and Lufthansa and find replacement flights for stranded passengers, often involving connections in Amsterdam, Frankfurt or Munich. But neither of the big low-cost airlines has any interest in opening up their inventory to other carriers – figuring, probably correctly, that they will Hoover up distressed passengers anyway.
British Airways could in theory set up an operation to find alternative flights manually for stranded travellers. But since during this dose of disruption average “hold times” on the phone lines were close to an hour, the chances of BA funding hundreds more staff to deal with the odd bout of disruption looks slim.
Complacency: All the UK airlines know that the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is unlikely to take action if they fail in their obligation to provide the “best fit” replacement for a cancelled flight. The CAA has robustly rapped the knuckles of Wizz Air, but that was for failing to deal properly with the “pay and reclaim” process – leaving some passengers many hundreds of pounds out of pocket. But the aviation regulator looks content to allow airlines to shrug off their duty of care, so long as they eventually stump up for the costs of self-service rescue.
How to spot a social media travel scam – and avoid losing hundreds of pounds
Monday 9 September 2024 20:22 , Alex Croft
Criminals are targeting frustrated travellers on social media by setting up scam airline accounts and pretending to offer help.
Read below to see how to avoid social media travel scams.
How to spot a travel scam on social media – and avoid losing hundreds of pounds
British Airways blames air-traffic control restrictions and bad weather for weekend cancellations
Monday 9 September 2024 20:58 , Alex Croft
After cancelling more than 250 flights between Friday and Monday – affecting around 40,000 passengers – British Airways has issued a statement pinning responsibility on air-traffic control problems across Europe.
A BA spokesperson said: “We operate hundreds of flights every day without disruption, successfully getting tens of thousands of our customers to where they need to be.
“Along with other airlines, we’ve had to make some small adjustments to our schedule because of air traffic control restrictions caused by adverse weather.
“Whilst the vast majority of our customers will be unaffected, we apologise for any inconvenience caused and our teams are working hard to help get journeys back on track.”
Under passengers’ rights rules, British Airways must provide alternative flights as soon as possible and, if necessary, hotel rooms.
What if you have a justifiable claim but it is turned down?
Monday 9 September 2024 21:31 , Alex Croft
You can go to a claims handler such as AirHelp, but be warned that the company will keep between 35 and 50 per cent of any payout (the higher amount if court action is involved).
Another course of action is alternative dispute resolution, but The Independent has serious reservations about some of the decisions of these arbiters.
Writing a Letter Before Action – warning that you will go to Money Claim Online if you do not get a positive response within two weeks – is worth trying, so long as you follow through. For a £350 claim the fee is £50, which is refunded if you win.
Since Brexit UK citizens no longer have access to the European Small Claims Procedure, so if you are chasing compensation on a flight originating in the EU it might be easiest to go through a claims handler.
Full report: UK flight chaos continues with dozens more cancellations at Gatwick and Heathrow
Monday 9 September 2024 22:00 , Alex Croft
The Independent’s Travel Correspondent Simon Calder reports:
Flight chaos continues with dozens more cancellations at Gatwick and Heathrow
Aviation minister commits to tackling ‘long overdue’ airspace modernisation
Monday 9 September 2024 22:47 , Alex Croft
Tackling issues with Europe’s airspace is “long overdue” and will speed up flights, a minister has said.
Aviation minister Mike Kane said UK airspace management is “an analogue system in a digital age”, and improvements will lead to “quicker, quieter, cleaner flights”.
He was speaking at an easyJet sustainability event at Cranfield University, where the airline said inefficient use of airspace contributes to increases in fuel consumption, carbon emissions and flight times.
The carrier described the problem as a “universal issue” across the whole of Europe, but the “greatest inefficiencies” for its operations are in the UK.
Among the causes are aircraft being required to climb in steps after take-off, complex routing, and delaying descents to manage the workload of air traffic control (ATC) staff.
Nearly 50 departures and 51 arrivals were cancelled on Sunday from Gatwick
Monday 9 September 2024 23:31 , Alex Croft
Gatwick flights have frequently been disrupted due to ATC staffing issues.
Analysis of data from flight tracking website FlightRadar24 shows 49 departures and 51 arrivals were cancelled on Sunday between 3pm and midnight, affecting more than 16,000 passengers.
Many other flights were delayed.
What flights have been delayed or cancelled?
Tuesday 10 September 2024 00:11 , Alex Croft
Around 3,500 passengers expecting to fly to or from London Gatwick on 20 flights on Monday morning have been grounded.
Most are booked on EasyJet, which cancelled its first flight of the day, to Ibiza, and six others including links to Naples and Nice.
Passengers were told the cause was “air-traffic control restrictions” and outside the airline’s control.
The cancellations are in addition to 64 flights grounded by easyJet on Sunday due to short-notice staff shortage in Gatwick’s control tower.
EasyJet said on Sunday evening that it was “extremely disappointed that customers are once again being impacted by this”.
In terms of the sheer scale of disruption over one of the busiest weekends of the year, British Airways passengers trying to fly to or from London Heathrow have been worst affected.
Between Friday and Sunday BA cancelled 240 flights, affecting around 40,000 passengers. On Monday the airline had grounded a further eight departures and arrivals at Heathrow, plus six at Gatwick.
Simon Calder: Your best strategy if your British Airways flight is cancelled
Tuesday 10 September 2024 00:58 , Alex Croft
Your best strategy if your British Airways flight is cancelled
Can you get cash compensation if your flight is cancelled or delayed?
01:55 , Alex Croft
You are due hundreds of pounds in compensation if the airline:
gives you less than 14 days’ notice of the cancellation and cannot find an alternative way to get you to your destination close to the original departure and arrival times, and
is responsible for the cancellation – ie it cannot plead “extraordinary circumstances” as causing the grounding of the flight.
The payment varies according to the length of the trip. There is also a slight variation depending on whether the flight starts in the UK or the EU. (After Brexit the UK retained largely identical legislation but with amounts in sterling, not euros).
Under 1,500km, for example London to Nice: £220 or €250
1,500-3,500km, such as Manchester-Malaga: £350 or €400
Above 3,500km, e g Birmingham-Dubai: £520 or €600
If the airline can get you to your destination within two/three/four hours respectively of the expected time, the compensation is halved.
What if you have a justifiable claim but it is turned down?
02:47 , Alex Croft
You can go to a claims handler such as AirHelp, but be warned that the company will keep between 35 and 50 per cent of any payout (the higher amount if court action is involved).
Another course of action is alternative dispute resolution, but The Independent has serious reservations about some of the decisions of these arbiters.
Writing a Letter Before Action – warning that you will go to Money Claim Online if you do not get a positive response within two weeks – is worth trying, so long as you follow through. For a £350 claim the fee is £50, which is refunded if you win.
Since Brexit UK citizens no longer have access to the European Small Claims Procedure, so if you are chasing compensation on a flight originating in the EU it might be easiest to go through a claims handler.
EasyJet: ‘We are sorry for the inconvenience caused’
03:41 , Alex Croft
A spokesperson for easyJet said: “Nats air-traffic control staffing shortages at Gatwick led to a significantly reduced flow rate being imposed on all airlines today which is resulting in flights to and from Gatwick airport being subject to disruption including some cancellations.
“We are extremely disappointed that customers are once again being impacted by this and while this is outside of our control, we are sorry for the inconvenience caused.
“We are doing all possible to minimise the impact of the disruption and have notified those on cancelled flights of their options to rebook or receive a refund and are providing hotel accommodation and meals where required.”
Aviation minister commits to tackling ‘long overdue’ airspace modernisation
04:45 , Alex Croft
Tackling issues with Europe’s airspace is “long overdue” and will speed up flights, a minister has said.
Aviation minister Mike Kane said UK airspace management is “an analogue system in a digital age”, and improvements will lead to “quicker, quieter, cleaner flights”.
He was speaking at an easyJet sustainability event at Cranfield University, where the airline said inefficient use of airspace contributes to increases in fuel consumption, carbon emissions and flight times.
The carrier described the problem as a “universal issue” across the whole of Europe, but the “greatest inefficiencies” for its operations are in the UK.
Among the causes are aircraft being required to climb in steps after take-off, complex routing, and delaying descents to manage the workload of air traffic control (ATC) staff.
British Airways blames air-traffic control restrictions and bad weather for weekend cancellations
05:39 , Alex Croft
After cancelling more than 250 flights between Friday and Monday – affecting around 40,000 passengers – British Airways has issued a statement pinning responsibility on air-traffic control problems across Europe.
A BA spokesperson said: “We operate hundreds of flights every day without disruption, successfully getting tens of thousands of our customers to where they need to be.
“Along with other airlines, we’ve had to make some small adjustments to our schedule because of air traffic control restrictions caused by adverse weather.
“Whilst the vast majority of our customers will be unaffected, we apologise for any inconvenience caused and our teams are working hard to help get journeys back on track.”
Under passengers’ rights rules, British Airways must provide alternative flights as soon as possible and, if necessary, hotel rooms.
Full report: UK flight chaos continues with dozens more cancellations at Gatwick and Heathrow
06:22 , Alex Croft
The Independent’s Travel Correspondent Simon Calder reports:
Flight chaos continues with dozens more cancellations at Gatwick and Heathrow
How to spot a social media travel scam – and avoid losing hundreds of pounds
07:02 , Alex Croft
Criminals are targeting frustrated travellers on social media by setting up scam airline accounts and pretending to offer help.
Read below to see how to avoid social media travel scams.
How to spot a travel scam on social media – and avoid losing hundreds of pounds
Flight delays continue at Gatwick but passengers spared cancellations
08:42 , Andy Gregory
Flight delays at Gatwick appeared to continue on Tuesday morning, with more than 100 flights departing more than 10 minutes after they were supposed to, according to a tally by The Independent.
However there were no cancellations so far at Gatwick, and only a single flight – the 7:30am British Airways carrier to Glasgow – had been cancelled at Heathrow.
Gatwick apologises for recent disruption
09:40 , Andy Gregory
Gatwick Airport has apologised to those who experienced disruption as a result of air traffic control shortages.
A Gatwick spokeswoman said provider Nats has “successfully increased the number of air traffic controllers over recent months”, adding: “So far this year, London Gatwick has safely handled more than 170,000 flights through Nats, a 4 per cent increase on last year.
“The Nats service has been fully available more than 99.6 per cent of the time, operating 24 hours a day. London Gatwick typically has 800 or more flight movements a day from a single runway.
“We will continue to work closely with the Nats leadership team to provide passengers and airlines with a good service. London Gatwick would like to apologise to any passengers who experienced disruption yesterday.”
Dozens more flights depart late at Gatwick
11:19 , Andy Gregory
Dozens of flights have departed after their schedued take-off time at Gatwick since our last update this morning, however there have still been no cancellations.
British Airways: What’s going wrong?
11:59 , Andy Gregory
British airline passengers often fail to appreciate just how lucky they are. The UK is the main base of operations for easyJet and Ryanair: Europe’s biggest budget airlines, offering wider horizons at lower fares than any other country in Europe. Jet2 and Virgin Atlantic have well-earned reputations for excellent service.
And that leaves British Airways with a formidable challenge.
No other national carrier endures such intense competition on its home turf. Air France and Lufthansa face challenges from low-cost airlines, but not to the same intensity; and they can fight back with their own budget brands, Transavia and Eurowings respectively. Long haul, all European airlines fight to retain passengers against rivals from the west and, more particularly, Gulf and Asian carriers to the east.
But only BA has a home-grown competitor of the scale and quality of Virgin Atlantic on all the most lucrative routes from London Heathrow.
British Airways, though, has a superpower: the majority of slots at the world’s most desirable international airport. BA’s portfolio of more than 50 per cent of the precious permissions to take off and land comprises the most valuable intangible property in aviation.
The Independent’s travel corresponent Simon Calder has more analysis here:
British Airways cancellations and delays: What’s causing so many problems?
Flights delayed for three hours straight at Gatwick, analysis suggests
12:55 , Andy Gregory
Some 173 out of the 206 flights – 83 per cent – to take off from Gatwick Airport today prior to 12:30pm departed after their scheduled take-off time, analysis by The Independent of FlightRadar24 data suggests.
Between 7:40am and 11am, not a single flight appears to have departed on time.
Ask Simon Calder | What’s my best bet to escape the gloomiest month of the year?
13:51 , Andy Gregory
Independent reader Sanj L has written in to say: “I need a holiday with at least some warmth. November is the best month for me but I am not sure where to go or when to book.”
Our travel correspondent Simon Calder replies: “A shrewd choice of month. I find November in the UK the most dismal month of the year – but conveniently, it also offers the very best value. The benefit of some Mediterranean sunshine is at its most valuable in the 11th month of the year and with no school holidays to drive up demand, you can expect cheap packages (or, if you prefer to arrange accommodation yourself, bargain-basement flights).
“The corollary is that the supply of holidays and flights is not as high as at other times of the year. Yet there is still a good amount of choice. This is my top three:
What’s my best bet to escape the gloomiest month of the year?
Need a holiday? How to nab a bargain trip before Christmas
17:09 , Andy Gregory
Our travel correspondent Simon Calder reports:
The September slump in holiday prices is well under way, with proper package holidays in the rest of the month available for £300 or less.
Later in the autumn and early winter, an escape to the Mediterranean, Adriatic or Atlantic is even more beneficial. Once the October half-term holiday is out of the away, prices fall still further. An all-inclusive package in Turkey is available for just £50 per day, and a DIY week on the coast of Albania for an absurd £135.
These are the best deals I have found today:
Need a holiday? Take advantage of the September slump and nab a bargain before Xmas
17:11 , Andy Gregory
We’re pausing updates on the blog for now, thanks for following here.
