Heathrow and Gatwick in chaos as dozens of flights cancelled leaving travellers furious
Dozens of flights to and from Heathrow and Gatwick had been cancelled due to bad weather and air traffic control restrictions plunging the two major airports into chaos.
Thousands of travellers were left fuming after flight cancellations at Heathrow and Gatwick airport today sparked travel chaos.
EasyJet had cancelled 32 flights at London Gatwick while British Airways reportedly also cancelled 32 flights from London Heathrow.
A message sent to passengers from EasyJet read: "We’re sorry that your flight has been cancelled. This is due to air traffic control restrictions.
"The disruption to your flight is outside of our control and is considered to be an extraordinary circumstance."
More than 10,000 passengers ultimately saw their travel plans cancelled, with one furious holidaymaker raging on social media as their flight was cancelled last minute.
They said: "EasyJet is the worst service ever!!! Cancelled my flight, won’t book me another hotel lol then says they can’t book me another hotel because the ones they use are sold out.”
Another passenger wrote on X, the site formerly known as Twitter: "To make us sit on a plane for 3 hours to then cancel the flight and give us zero alternatives is an absolute disgrace!
"Family holiday cancelled, now no doubt I will have to fight tooth and nail for my money back and compensation!”
Flights to and from Budapest, Lanzarote and Venice have reportedly been cancelled.
British Airways also cancelled two-round trips to Rome and services to Barcelona, Naples and Larnaca, in Cyprus were also affected.
RyanAir, which didn't cancel any services, cited issues with ATC services as they apologised to customers for major delays.
In a statement, the airline said: "ATC services, which have had the benefit of no French ATC strike disruption this summer, continue to underperform with repeated ‘staff shortages.'
"We apologise to our passengers for these repeated ATC flight delays which are deeply regrettable but beyond Ryanair’s control."
The budget airline said the delays were "unacceptable" and blamed ATC "mismanagement" for the major disruption.