Heathrow suspends all departures after technical fault

20min.ch (German) — September 8, 2026 at 06:01 PM UTC

All flights departing from London Heathrow Airport were suspended on Tuesday afternoon due to a technical fault affecting air traffic control systems, with normal operations not expected to resume until 8 p.m. local time. The ground stop began at 12:48 p.m. after an unexpected system problem disrupted communication and equipment. By 5 p.m., 625 flights had been cancelled, affecting airlines including Swiss, which scrapped 10 flights and impacted 1,007 passengers. Disruptions also spread to other European airports. Heathrow, which served 229,752 daily passengers in 2024, experienced a similar but brief issue earlier that morning. Gatwick Airport also faced temporary interruptions but has since resumed normal operations. Passengers are advised to check flight status with their airlines.

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