Sixteen airports have been affected by the chaos including London-Gatwick (Image: JUSTIN TALLIS, AFP via Getty Images)
ABTA, Britain’s largest trade travel association, has released a statement following air traffic control disruption at UK airports which has extended into a second day.
According to BBC data, sourced from aviation analytics company Cirium, 1,750 flights were grounded yesterday (Tuesday, September 8), with over 150 cancelled so far today. Substantial delays are also set to continue today owing to the ripple effect from yesterday’s cancellations.
Passengers waiting at London-Heathrow (Image: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire)
A minimum of 16 major UK airports have been impacted by the series of cancellations, which stem from a significant technical fault affecting National Air Traffic Services (NATS), prompting ABTA to release guidance for affected travellers, reports the Mirror.
Luke Petherbridge, director of public affairs at ABTA, said in a statement: “If your flight has been delayed or cancelled customers will have rights, which will vary depending on whether they booked their flight separately or as part of a package.
“ABTA members will be supporting those booked with them, to help make alternative arrangements, and we have advice on abta.com to help people understand their rights. While the immediate priority is supporting customers, as this isn’t the first NATS outage to cause widespread disruption, the industry and the public will want answers as to what has gone wrong, what lessons are being learned, and how the system will be made more resilient to avoid this happening again.”
Delayed passengers should follow ABTA’s guidelines (Image: JUSTIN TALLIS, AFP via Getty Images)
ABTA has urged travellers to consult its FAQs page, which provides a comprehensive breakdown of passenger rights in the event of a flight delay or cancellation. Should a flight be delayed, airlines are obligated to provide certain assistance, ranging from refreshments to accommodation and transfers, depending on both the duration of the delay and the route affected.
ABTA also states: “If the delay exceeds five hours, your airline must offer you the choice of taking a refund of the flight cost.”
However, passengers affected by today’s disruption are unlikely to be entitled to additional compensation. The organisation clarifies: “if it wasn’t the airline’s fault, you won’t be entitled to receive any compensation. Delays caused by things like extreme weather, airport or air traffic control strikes or other ‘extraordinary circumstances’ are not eligible for compensation.”
Cancellations will run into a second day (Image: Getty)
For those facing cancellations, ABTA confirms: “If your flight is cancelled and you’re departing from the UK, your airline must offer you the choice of a replacement flight at the earliest opportunity or a refund.”
The travel association further advises: “If you were at the airport when your flight was cancelled, and you’ve chosen rerouting, you’re also entitled to care and assistance while you wait to be rerouted. This usually means food, drink, access to communications (e.g. two free phone calls) plus accommodation and the necessary transfers if the replacement flight departs the next day or later.”
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This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
