Hundreds more flights cancelled as transport secretary apologises for air traffic control fault
Hundreds of flights around the UK have been cancelled after yesterday’s air traffic control disruption, as the transport secretary apologised for the fault – saying issues on this scale “haven’t happened for a decade”.
The incident on Bank Holiday Monday meant flight plans had to be uploaded to systems manually, slowing or cancelling air traffic across the country.
Thousands of passengers were affected by yesterday’s disruption – and many are still waiting for their flights into today.
Some 790 departures and 785 arrivals at UK airports were cancelled on Monday, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium – around 27% of all scheduled flights in and out of the country.
Britons sleeping on floors in airports – live updates
Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary criticised the UK NATS in a video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Tuesday afternoon, saying it was “not acceptable” the system had gone down without a backup.
“We still haven’t had an explanation from them [about] what exactly caused this failure, and where were their backup systems?
“It’s simply not acceptable that UK NATS would allow their systems to be taken down and everybody’s flights get cancelled.”
He added 250 flights were cancelled by his airline on Monday, and another 70 flights would be cancelled until the end of the day on Tuesday.
Mark Harper stressed that technical experts have ruled out a cybersecurity incident, with the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) set to investigate.
“Something on this scale hasn’t happened for almost a decade – normally the system works very well,” Mr Harper told Sky News.
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PM: ‘Passengers have rights’
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Mr Harper would remind airlines about their responsibilities to passengers hit by air traffic control disruption, telling reporters: “I know people will be enormously frustrated by the disruption that’s impacting them.
Mr Sunak added: “The transport secretary is in constant dialogue with all the industry participants, he will be talking to airlines specifically later today and making sure that they support passengers to get home as quickly as possible.”
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Hundreds ‘stranded in shocking conditions’
Flights are running – but there are warnings of cancellations and delays
There have been reports of heated scenes at airports across Europe, with “fists flying” in Palma as exasperated tourists struggle to return home, while others sleep out in airports in the hope of catching a new flight.
Heathrow Airport says services will remain disrupted today – and passengers are being urged to contact their airline before heading to the terminal.
More than 60 flights have been cancelled at the west London airport – made up of at least 32 departures and 31 arrivals.
Elsewhere, London Gatwick said it plans to operate a normal schedule on Tuesday following the disruption, though at least 23 departures and 51 arrivals were listed as cancelled at the airport.
Outside of London, most airports appear to be returning to a normal schedule, with Glasgow saying a handful of flights will be disrupted as a result of Monday’s issue, while departure boards at Manchester and Bristol airports show a small number of services have been cancelled.
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Passengers left stranded
‘I don’t like the ending to this story’
Travellers from the UK have reported disruption both in the UK and abroad – with some saying they may not be able to fly until the weekend.
TV host Ore Oduba posted on Instagram saying his cancelled easyJet flight from Greece left them “stranded” with no supplies for their two toddlers, mocking the voucher they had been offered from the airline.
Meanwhile, athletes and broadcasters who have been out at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, have also reported delays, with sport presenter Jeanette Kwakye writing on X, formerly known as Twitter: “No idea when I’ll be back, any suggestions for ways home that don’t involve 36 hours of travelling or endangering my life are welcome.”
She added: “I don’t like the ending to this story.”
The US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has affirmed that national banks can intermediate cryptocurrency trades as riskless principals without holding the assets on their balance sheets, a move that brings traditional banks a step closer to offering regulated crypto brokerage services.
In an interpretive letter released on Tuesday, the regulator said banks may act as principals in a crypto trade with one customer while simultaneously entering an offsetting trade with another, a structure that mirrors riskless principal activity in traditional markets.
“Several applicants have discussed how conducting riskless principal crypto-asset transactions would benefit their proposed bank’s customers and business, including by offering additional services in a growing market,” notes the document.
According to the OCC, the move would allow customers “to transact crypto-assets through a regulated bank, as compared to non-regulated or less regulated options.”
The letter also reiterates that banks must confirm the legal permissibility of any crypto activity and ensure it aligns with their chartered powers. Institutions are expected to maintain procedures for monitoring operational, compliance and market risks.
“The main risk in riskless principal transactions is counterparty credit risk (in particular, settlement risk),” reads the letter, adding that “managing counterparty credit risk is integral to the business of banking, and banks are experienced in managing this risk.”
The agency’s guidance cites 12 U.S.C. § 24, which permits national banks to conduct riskless principal transactions as part of the “business of banking.” The letter also draws a distinction between crypto assets that qualify as securities, noting that riskless principal transactions involving securities were already clearly permissible under existing law.
The OCC’s interpretive letter — a nonbinding guidance that outlines the agency’s view of which activities national banks may conduct under existing law — was issued a day after the head of the OCC, Jonathan Gould, said crypto firms seeking a federal bank charter should be treated the same as traditional financial institutions.
According to Gould, the banking system has the “capacity to evolve,” and there is “no justification for considering digital assets differently” than traditional banks, which have offered custody services “electronically for decades.”
Related: Trump’s national security strategy is silent on crypto, blockchain
From ‘Choke Point 2.0’ to pro-crypto policy
Under the Biden administration, some industry groups and lawmakers accused US regulators of pursuing an “Operation Choke Point 2.0” approach that increased supervisory pressure on banks and firms interacting with crypto.
Since President Trump took office in January after pledging to support the sector, the federal government has moved in the opposite direction, adopting a more permissive posture toward digital asset activity.
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CryptoUK, a UK-based cryptocurrency trade association, has announced that it will join The Digital Chamber, a US crypto policy advocacy group, potentially marking a significant cross-collaboration on digital asset regulation between the two countries.
In a Tuesday notice, CryptoUK said its team would fall under The Digital Chamber’s umbrella as part of a “unified, cross-border advocacy platform.” Both groups have worked in their respective countries to promote policies favoring the cryptocurrency and blockchain industry, starting with The Digital Chamber in 2014 and CryptoUK in 2018.
“CryptoUK has always aspired to ensure we are driven by policy-led issues, member collaboration, and regulatory engagement,” said Su Carpenter, CryptoUK’s executive director.
The partnership between the two advocacy groups comes as US lawmakers move forward on negotiations to pass a digital asset market structure bill, aiming to establish regulatory clarity for the industry. In the UK, policymakers announced plans to collaborate with their counterparts in the US to explore crypto laws and regulations.
Related: Digital Chamber seeks to guide crypto policy across US states
US-based crypto advocacy organizations, such as The Digital Chamber, have garnered support from former regulators and members of Congress as the Trump White House directs policies toward the industry. Among these groups are the Solana Policy Institute, the Blockchain Association, the Crypto Council for Innovation, and the American Innovation Project.
UK central bank moves forward on stablecoins
On Nov. 10, the Bank of England released a consultation paper to propose a framework for “sterling-denominated systemic stablecoins.” The move by the country’s central bank marked a step toward the UK seeming to play catch-up to the US, where the government passed a law regulating payment stablecoins in July.
Bank of England Deputy Governor Sarah Breeden signaled before the publication of the paper that the central bank’s actions were in response to the US advancing stablecoin policies, and it was “really important” to be synchronized on rules.
Magazine: When privacy and AML laws conflict: Crypto projects’ impossible choice
Kemi Badenoch has refused to say that the Conservatives are intending to win next May’s local elections, despite being repeatedly pushed on the issue.
Asked twice to define success for her party at the elections, the Tory leader merely said that she is “going to be fighting for every vote”.
Speaking to Sky News, she added: “Success is going to be people seeing the Conservative Party as the only party that is competent and credible enough to do the tough stuff that this country needs.”
The comments come as the Conservatives continue to trail in the polls.
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Watch Kemi Badenoch’s interview with Sky News in full
New data released by YouGov this morning has put the Tories in third place behind Reform and Labour, a space they have largely occupied throughout the year. The pollster’s weekly voting intention analysis put Ms Badenoch’s party on 18%, down one percentage point.
YouGov’s weekly voting intention poll has the Tories down one percent on last week, and just three above the Greens. Pic: YouGov
Ms Badenoch gave a speech on welfare costs in London on Tuesday, where she attacked the government’s plans to tackle child poverty. Afterwards, she sat down with Sky News political correspondent Sam Coates.
Asked about the local elections, she said: “There are going to be local elections all over the country, and there’s a conservative message that I want everyone to hear: Our country’s not working properly.
“There are fundamental things that need to change. We need to create jobs. Otherwise, we’re not going to have money for councils.”
She added: “We’ve seen new parties like Reform come in. They’re making a hash of things at council level. We need to make sure that people can see the benefits of voting Conservative.”
Ms Badenoch also refused to score her party’s performance out of 10. Pic: PA
When it was pointed out that she had not defined success as winning the local elections, Ms Badenoch said: “The country is going to decide. We’re going to put out an offer, and we’re going to fight for every vote.”
May will see local council elections, as well as votes for the Senedd in Wales and the Scottish Parliament. They are seen as a crucial moment for the Tory leader – and also for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
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‘Of course poverty bothers me’
Ms Badenoch also refused to score the party’s performance out of 10, as the year draws to a close, and she marks a little over 12 months as leader.
She told Sky News: “When I look at the historic defeats which Conservatives suffered last year, things are definitely better.”
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Challenged on the Tories’ position in the polls, Ms Badenoch said: “Of course, we have a mountain to climb.
“We lost more seats [in 2024] than we’ve ever done in our 200-year history. This was always going to be a long road ahead.”
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