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‘We’re gutted!’ Selby family’s first holiday ruined by air traffic control chaos

Tue 29 Aug 2023 @ 12:26pm - News
YorkMix

Passengers at Belfast International Airport, as flights to the UK and Ireland have been cancelled as a result of air traffic control issues in the UK. Photograph: Liam McBurney / PA wire

A Selby family have spoken of their dismay after their first holiday together was hit by the air traffic control (ATC) failures.

Flights have been delayed and cancelled leaving thousands of passengers stranded during a technical fault in the UK’s ATC system.

The issue started on Bank Holiday Monday after a technical glitch meant flight plans had to be input manually by controllers, causing more than a quarter of departures and arrivals to be axed.

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The disruption continued into today (Tuesday) with flights cancelled and delayed as many aircraft and crews are out of position.

Ryan and Kirsty Fawcett, from Selby, had travelled with their two-year-old twin sons to East Midlands Airport for their first holiday as a family – and the couple’s first since 2019.

They were booked to go Antalya in Turkey, with scheduled to take off at 4.45pm on Monday.

Their flight on Monday afternoon was cancelled, and after staying in a hotel overnight, they were booked on another departure on Tuesday morning that was also axed.

Ryan said: “We arrived at about 1pm but we got the text to say we were delayed by three hours, but to get here for the same time.

“At the same time, we were waiting in departures, we were told it would be a further hour and a half delay to 9.30pm, and then at about 8.20pm we got told to go to Gate 1 to tell us it was cancelled.

“We got told we would be flying today and we managed to get a hotel at short notice last night, and then they told us this morning that it was cancelled.

“We’re gutted but it is what it is. If air traffic control has gone down and it is unsafe, it is one of those things, but our two kids have been looking forward to it.”

Kirsty added:  “What has annoyed us more is we have been told ‘just sit and wait around’, with the extra expense of hotels and things.

Passengers look at departure boards at Belfast International Airport. Photograph: Liam McBurney / PA wire

“What if we didn’t have money spare?

“We will go home and see what happens, and see if we can get a last-minute thing but it depends if we can get the refund.

“It can’t be helped, but it’s just the waiting – people were having a go at the staff, but it’s not their fault.”

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said the ATC failure was the worst incident of its kind in “nearly a decade” and announced an “independent review” will be carried out.

National Air Traffic Services said at 3.15pm on Monday the problem was resolved, but disruption continued into Tuesday as many aircraft and crews were out of position.

[tptn_list limit=3 daily=1 hour_range=1]

Tue 29 Aug, 2023

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