Flight data received by UK air traffic services ’caused fault’ leading to delays

world
Flight Data Received By Uk Air Traffic Services ’Caused Fault’ Leading To Delays
There are no indications that the failure was caused by a cyber-attack, according to the UK's National Air Traffic Services. Photo: PA
Share this article

By Ellie Ng, PA

The air traffic control failure which led to a spate of flight cancellations across Europe was caused by flight data received by the UK's National Air Traffic Services (Nats).

There are no indications that the failure was caused by a cyber-attack, a statement by Nats said on Tuesday.

Advertisement

Nats chief executive Martin Rolfe said he wanted to “reassure” people that all systems had been running normally since Monday afternoon to support airline and airport operations.

He said: “Very occasionally technical issues occur that are complex and take longer to resolve.

“In the event of such an issue our systems are designed to isolate the problem and prioritise continued safe air traffic control.

“This is what happened yesterday.

Advertisement

“At no point was UK airspace closed but the number of flights was significantly reduced.

Air traffic control system fault
A departure board at Heathrow Airport as disruption from air traffic control issues continues (Lucy North/PA)

“Initial investigations into the problem show it relates to some of the flight data we received.

Advertisement

“Our systems, both primary and the back-ups, responded by suspending automatic processing to ensure that no incorrect safety-related information could be presented to an air traffic controller or impact the rest of the air traffic system.

“There are no indications that this was a cyber-attack.

“We have well established procedures, overseen by the CAA, to investigate incidents.

“We are already working closely with them to provide a preliminary report to the Secretary of State for Transport on Monday.

Advertisement

“The conclusions of this report will be made public.”

Read More

Message submitting... Thank you for waiting.

Want us to email you top stories each lunch time?

Download our Apps
© BreakingNews.ie 2024, developed by Square1 and powered by PublisherPlus.com