Nearly 800 flights at Heathrow and Gatwick airports have been delayed and dozens cancelled due to thunderstorms sweeping across the UK. According to flight tracker FlightAware, at least 377 flights arriving at or departing from Heathrow were delayed on Saturday, while 399 flights in and out of Gatwick faced similar disruption. The UK air traffic control service, NATS, warned that delays were expected to continue for the rest of the day, causing widespread misery for passengers.
Air Traffic Control Restrictions and Affected Airspace
Europe-wide aviation agency Eurocontrol reported that Heathrow and Gatwick were the only two UK airports currently facing “heavy” delays due to inclement weather. The most severe air traffic control delays were in airspace between south-east England and northwestern Europe. Flights on routes outside the storm area continued to operate as scheduled. The storms, which brought lightning strikes across London and are suspected of starting a house fire, have since moved across the Channel to northwestern Europe.
Passenger Experiences and Social Media Complaints
One affected passenger, Adam Joseph, 29, told BBC News he had been stranded at Venice airport in Italy without air conditioning after his flight to Gatwick was delayed by over four hours. He was due to depart Venice at 12:30pm local time but the plane had not yet left London on its outbound leg. Other travellers took to social media to vent their frustration. One person asked EasyJet on X: “My daughter has been sat on a plane at Gatwick for 4 hours and now you’ve cancelled the flight. She’s on an easyJet holiday. What should she do?” Another user wrote: “We've been on board EZ8811 at Gatwick for 4.5 hours. The captain has announced the aircraft is ready to depart but we're waiting for a tug crew to push back. We're desperate to get to Montenegro for our holiday. Can someone from operations please assist?”
Official Statements from NATS and Airports
NATS stated that “weather disruption was expected to continue through the rest of the day” after “forecasted severe weather across the south east of England”. A spokesman for Gatwick airport said: “Due to ongoing thunderstorms across the network last night, temporary air traffic restrictions were put in place, which resulted in some flights being delayed and cancelled this morning.” A Heathrow airport representative added: “Adverse weather conditions and thunderstorms across the UK and Europe has led to temporary air traffic restrictions, which means some flights at Heathrow were impacted this morning.” Further thunderstorms are possible in the UK this weekend, according to weather warnings.
