Air site visitors management boss breaks silence on cyber assault worry as airport chaos continues
Martin Rolfe, chief executive of air traffic controller Nats, said there will be a “very, very thorough investigation” into the technical problem that caused major flight as he weighed in on cyber attack rumours
The UK’s main air traffic control provider has broken its silence on the widespread flight disruption after rumours it had been caused by a cyber attack. Nats, the National Air Traffic Service, has now “ruled out” a cyber attack being the cause of the major chaos at airports across the country.
Flight monitoring website Flightradar24 said 1,300 flights had been cancelled to and from UK airports on Tuesday (September 8) after a system issue hit Nats, which provides air traffic control services to 15 UK airports.
Tens of thousands of passengers were caught up in the chaos, which continued on Wednesday with cancellations and delays expected as airlines deal with the knock-on impacts at airports including Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Stansted.
Delayed passengers wait and queue with their luggage at Terminal 3 of London Heathrow airport(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
According to FlightRadar, 246 flights had been cancelled at Heathrow Airport by 6am on Wednesday (September 9), while Gatwick passengers faced 33 cancellations.
Nats’ chief executive officer Martin Rolfe told BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme: “We will be doing a very, very thorough and full investigation. We have at this point ruled out cyber. We don’t believe it was a cyber attack.”
Mr Rolfe also apologised for the widespread disruption to flights but admitted that “Inevitably, things do go wrong in complex systems.”
He will speak to the Transport Secretary on Wednesday as disruption is set to continue after a technical issue grounded flights.
Mr Rolfe added: “I would say the UK has one of the best reputations in the world for its air traffic control service, both from a safety perspective and from a resilience perspective.
Hundreds of flights were cancelled as a result (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
“Nats was actually a partial privatisation 25 years ago, and since that point, it’s had access to funding. We’ve invested way more than a billion in technology over that time, our service has consistently improved. Our safety is consistently improved from a very good base.
“But all of those things don’t detract from the fact that when these things happen, it is disappointing and upsetting, for which I apologise.”
In a statement on social media on Wednesday morning, Heathrow Airport advised travellers to check their flight status before heading to the airport.
Flight map showing yesterday’s chaos around Heathrow Airport(Image: Flightradar24/PA Wire)
“Following yesterday’s NATS technical issue, flights are operating today, but some disruption may continue as airlines reposition aircraft and crew,” it said.
“Please check your flight status with your airline before travelling to the airport and only travel if your flight is confirmed to be operating.
“We apologise to those affected and have extra colleagues across our terminals to support passengers while we work with NATS and airline partners to restore normal operations as quickly as possible.”
In a statement on X, London Gatwick Airport also said flights had resumed but disruption was likely to continue.
The statement said: “We still anticipate that it will take time for our operations to fully return to normal. Passengers should continue to check with their airlines for more information regarding their flights.”
Travel journalist Simon Calder said the knock-on effects on Wednesday were “going to be horrible”. He told Sky News: “There are going to be dozens of cancellations in the morning of flights coming into Heathrow because, basically, the flights didn’t go out tonight.”
