AT LEAST 135 flights into and out of Dublin Airport have been cancelled as a result of an air traffic control fault which has caused travel carnage in the UK.
At around 12noon yesterday the national air traffic services (Nats) organisation confirmed it was experiencing a “technical issue” and had applied UK-wide traffic flow restrictions to flights to “maintain safety”.
The restrictions caused delays and cancellations to hundreds of flights due to fly in and out of the UK on one of the busiest travel days of the year.
It was another three hours before the fault was fixed, by which point a huge backlog of flights had built up, with the impact stretching to airports across the globe, and leaving thousands of passengers stranded.
At Dublin Airport 115 flights were cancelled yesterday as a result of the restrictions in the UK.
Today a further 20 flights have been cancelled which were due to fly in or out of the airport, the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) has confirmed to the Irish Post.
“As of 1pm, airlines have cancelled 20 flights into and out of Dublin today as a result of the knock-on impact of yesterday’s ATC issues in the UK,” the DAA stated.
“This is in addition to the around 115 flights cancelled yesterday.”
They added: “The Dublin Airport team worked through the night to help and support any passengers who were staying overnight in the terminals, providing blankets and refreshments, while several food and beverage outlets were kept open all night.”
In a statement Graeme McQueen, Media Relations Manager at DAA, which is the operator of Dublin Airport, explained: “Just as it did yesterday, the team at Dublin Airport is today (Tuesday) continuing to support our airline partners and working hard to ensure impacted passengers are able to resume their travel plans as quickly and as safely as possible.”
He added: “Passengers intending to fly today are advised to check the status of their flight with their airline, before travelling to the airport.
“Passengers needing to re-book flights are encouraged to do so via their airline’s app or website.”
Regarding the situation at Dublin Airport this afternoon, Mr McQueen confirmed: “Passengers travelling on Tuesday can expect Dublin Airport to be busy, but additional airport resources are being deployed to help them on their way and to ensure high standards for passengers travelling through.
“For any of our car park customers delayed coming back into Dublin Airport as a result of the ATC issues in the UK, we are waiving any additional parking fees they may have incurred,” he added.
“Impacted passengers should speak with a member of staff on the ground or use the intercom facility when exiting their car park.”
