“Weird Timing”: Heathrow Passengers Sleep in Plastic Trays After UK Air Traffic Control Failure
- A technical failure in the UK’s air traffic control system grounded hundreds of flights, leaving thousands of passengers stranded at major airports
- Passengers at Heathrow were handed large plastic security trays to sleep on after waiting for hours with nowhere to go
- Over 1,500 flights were cancelled across Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, and Stansted, with further disruptions expected in the days that followed
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Source: Getty Images
Thousands of passengers were left stranded at airports across the United Kingdom after a major technical failure in the country’s air traffic control system brought air travel to a near standstill.
The disruption affected some of the busiest airports in the country, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, and Stansted. More than 1,500 flights were cancelled as a result, leaving countless travellers with no clear idea of when they would reach their destinations.
Plastic trays handed out as makeshift beds
With no accommodation arranged and hours of waiting ahead of them, passengers at Heathrow were handed large plastic security trays, the kind used in screening queues, to use as sleeping surfaces on the airport floor. Photos taken at the scene showed exhausted travellers stretched out across the trays, a sight that quickly drew attention online.
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The images, shared by Metro UK on TikTok, spread rapidly as viewers expressed disbelief at the conditions passengers were forced to endure. The knock-on effects of the outage continued into the following day, with authorities warning that further delays and cancellations were likely as the system recovered.
Social media reacts
The footage sparked strong reactions from viewers who felt airlines and airports had failed their duty of care to stranded passengers.
@eyera_mar said:
“It's so weird to me how a first-world country doesn't have a 24-hour hotel at the airport.”
@debbiemoorcroft wrote:
“This is ridiculous. They should put them all in a hotel. I would be completely livid.”
@Queen 👑 👑 pointed out:
“Normally, airlines provide hotel accommodation and food.”
@Marcello added:
“Heathrow is maybe one of the worst.”
3 more unfortunate airport events
- Violent wind gusts tore through Forlì Airport in northern Italy on Friday, flipping four light aircraft on the tarmac.
- The Cessna 172 carrying a student pilot and an instructor, which came down in a Midrand business park on Tuesday, experienced engine failure mid-air.
- An Amazon cargo plane overran a runway at Miami International Airport on Sunday afternoon, killing five people and injuring several others.
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Source: Briefly News
