Cyberattack not cause of air traffic issues that snarled flights: UK

The British government said Tuesday that a breakdown at the nationwide air traffic control system that saw hundreds of flights delayed and cancelled was not caused by a cyberattack.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said the problem was caused by a technical fault at flight control operator National Air Traffic Services. The company said the outage had hit its ability to process flight plans automatically, meaning that for several hours the plans had to be input manually, a much slower process that meant fewer flights could take off and land.

Harper told the BBC that it is going to take some days to get people back to where they should be.

The problem hit on a late-summer holiday Monday that is one of the busiest days of the year for air travel. Aviation analytics firm Cirium said that by Monday afternoon, 232 flights due to leave UK airports and 271 arriving flights had been cancelled.

Dozens of flights were cancelled at Heathrow, Europe's busiest air hub, which warned of knock-on impacts. At least 32 departures from Heathrow were canceled on Tuesday, and 31 arrivals axed.

Gatwick, London's second-busiest airport, said it planned to operate a normal schedule on Tuesday, but advised passengers to check with airlines before travelling to the airport.