Katy Austin
Transport correspondent

Martin Rolfe, the chief executive of Nats, tells the BBC that his organisation's systems are fit for purpose, and has apologised for Tuesday's issue.

Speaking to the BBC, he says that while the system was now operating normally, “of course, there's a huge backlog” of flights and passengers.

When pushed on how long systems weren’t working properly, Rolfe wasn’t sure but agrees it was “probably” in the ballpark of six hours.

Rolfe says the focus is "about recovery" and they are "having a full investigation" into what went wrong.

Asked if an incident like this showed Nats’ systems aren't fit for purpose, he responds: “I don't think so, no."

He says: “Whilst we never want these things to happen - and I absolutely apologise for the fact it has happened today - I do think we're fit for purpose."

Asked if he is considering his position, Rolfe says: "I’m obviously focusing on making sure that we get this solved.

"My focus today has been making sure the team's in the right place, we have the right resources, the technical issues are being investigated, and the recovery happens.

"There'll be lots of time for that later, but that's not now,” he adds.

Monitoring service FlightRadar has reported that "more than 1,000 flights have been cancelled" across UK airports.

In a post on X earlier on Tuesday evening, the service says that inbound flights into London airports, Manchester and Birmingham are "looking very different tonight compared to last Tuesday".

Bristol Airport says flights are now arriving and departing at Bristol Airport, following the Nats issue earlier today.

In a statement on X, it warns that disruption is "likely to continue" into tomorrow and customers should check the latest flight information with their airline.

Heathrow Airport says arrivals have been suspended for the remainder of the day "to ensure the safety of our passengers and colleagues".

In a statement published on X, the airport says departures have resumed but "disruption is expected to continue", so it advises passengers to check with their airline for the latest information for their flight before travelling to the airport.

"We apologise to those affected and are supporting our local Nats team and airline partners as they work through the resulting disruption," it adds.

Image source, Reuters

We have just had a statement from East Midlands Airport, saying it expects a "full flight schedule" to operate tomorrow.

Manchester Airport, which is part of the same airport operator, Manchester Airports Group, has shared an identical statement also timestamped to 20:20 BST.

It says that though the Nats issue from earlier today is fixed, "flight disruption is expected to continue for the rest of the day".

Passengers disrupted by delayed and cancelled flights have shared their experiences, watch below:

Image source, Getty Images

A quick trawl over the websites of flights across the UK shows a huge amount of disruption continues into the evening.

Here's an example of some of the flights that were displaying as cancelled or delayed, shortly after 21:00 BST on Tuesday:

At Manchester airport:

• 20:35 Ryanair FR3238 to Charleroi
• 21:30 Vueling Airlines VY8749 to Barcelona

At Birmingham airport:

• 16:40 Ryanair FR2162 to Palma has been delayed to an estimated time of 23:30

At London Heathrow airport:

• 20:20 British Airways BA508 to Lisbon
• 22:30 AM008 to Mexico City

At Glasgow airport:

• 20:05 Easyjet EZY411 to London Stansted
• 20:40 Ryanair FR5562 to Dublin is delayed to an estimated take-off of 01:50 on Wednesday

East Midlands Airport says it is expecting to operate a "full flight schedule" on Wednesday.

In a statement shared on X, and timestamped to 20:20 BST, the airport says that the Nats issue from earlier today is fixed but "flight disruption is expected to continue for the rest of the day".

The airport adds: "A full flight schedule is expected to operate tomorrow but the airport may be busier due to rescheduled flights."

Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) says it has had to cancel four flights so far due to the national issue with air traffic control.

In an update shared with passengers at 19:30 BST, the airport in West Yorkshire said five further flights were left to depart this evening.

"There are ongoing residual delays as the airlines recover service," a spokesperson for LBA said, thanking customers for their patience.

While the system issue impacting Nats has been resolved, the air traffic control provider admits the recovery of regular flights is taking longer than hoped.

That delay has left passengers across the country frowning at screens and flicking through their phones - like these travellers pictured at London Heathrow today.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, PA Media

Jack Grey
Live reporter

Image source, Reuters

Hundreds of flights at airports across the UK have been cancelled due to an air traffic control issue.

Here's what we know:

• The issue has now been fixed, according to air traffic control provider Nats, who said its systems were "starting to recover", but later added that the recovery was taking "longer than hoped"
• The BBC understands small numbers of aircraft are being released as “trials” at various airports, with a view to ramping up to more regular flights

• Nats said the disruption was caused by an issue with its “flight processing system"
• The fault was widespread across the UK, and beyond, with airports in Scotland and Ireland also reporting disruption
• Europe's busiest airline, Ryanair, earlier reported that more than 65,000 passengers had been delayed by up to eight hours

And what we don't know:

• The exact cause of the fault that led to the disruption, other than it being a technical issue in Nats' systems
• How long it will take for flights to fully resume and for the backlog to be fully cleared

Image source, Getty Images

Wizz Air has branded air traffic control provider Nats "simply not fit for purpose in its current form" after a technical issue caused hundreds of cancelled flights.

In a statement the airline says it is "extremely disappointed" that "another Nats technical failure" has caused widespread disruption.

"A critical national infrastructure provider should not repeatedly bring the aviation system to a standstill," it says.

It says "urgent reform is needed" and that airlines, passengers and airports "cannot continue to bear the consequences of recurring system failures".

"We sincerely apologise to affected passengers, but today’s disruption originates from the UK air traffic control system and is entirely outside Wizz Air’s control," the statement concludes.

Nats declined to comment on Wizz Air's statement when contacted by the BBC.

Air traffic control provider Nats says recovery from its system issue that has caused widespread disruption is taking "longer than we had hoped".

"Our system issue is now resolved, we are operating normally and working as hard as possible to clear the backlog of flights," it says in a post on X.

"We are truly sorry for the ongoing flight disruption. We know this is hugely frustrating and apologise unreservedly. Passengers should continue to check with their airline."

Image source, Emma Chun

Emma Chun is currently tucking into her British Airways starter on the Heathrow tarmac after her flight was cancelled, but passengers aren’t yet able to get off the plane.

She says the flight was due to take off for New York at 13:20 BST, but all flights were grounded before the plane was given clearance to take off - with passengers since being told the flight had been cancelled.

Emma was still on the plane at 18:30.

"We can’t get off the plane as there’s no steps available so they’ve just served our starters," she says, adding that cabin crew have been able to tell passengers very little.

Emma adds that British Airways have instead booked them on an alternative flight tomorrow, via Copenhagen, arriving in New York on Thursday evening.

"We were due to fly to Buffalo for the day on Thursday to go to Niagra Falls so it means we would also miss that," she says.

Faye Hawker
Live reporter

So far this afternoon, at least 22 flights which were due to land at Heathrow have been diverted to other UK and European airports. They are:

15:10 Finnair 1335 Helsinki to Heathrow diverted to Stansted

15:25 BA268 Los Angeles to Heathrow diverted to Manchester

15:35 BA381 Tirana to Heathrow landed at Gatwick

15:45 BA008 Tokyo to Heathrow diverted to Manchester

15:45 SQ 308 Singapore to Heathrow diverted to Paris

15:45 BA625 Tivat to Heathrow diverted to Gatwick

16:00 AM007 Mexico City to Heathrow diverted to Paris

16:00 TK1931 Istanbul to Heathrow diverted to Birmingham

16:05 BA274 Las Vegas to Heathrow diverted to Gatwick

16:10 EK031 Dubai to Heathrow diverted to Birmingham

16:15 VS301 Delhi to Heathrow diverted to Stansted

16:20 NH211 Tokyo to Heathrow diverted to Stansted

16:30 CI081 Taipei to Heathrow diverted to Frankfurt

16:40 TK1971 Istanbul to Heathrow diverted to Brussels

16:45 BA717 Istanbul to Heathrow diverted to Luton

16:55 BA062 Nairobi to Heathrow diverted to Stansted

17:00 BA 689 Santorini to Heathrow diverted to Stansted

17:35 VS 024 Los Angeles to Heathrow diverted to Manchester

17:40 BA705 Larnaca to Heathrow diverted to Manchester

17:45 6E001 Mumbai to Heathrow diverted to Amsterdam

18:15 BA198 Mumbai diverted to Amsterdam

18:40 BA238 Boston to Heathrow diverted to Glasgow

Katy Austin
Transport correspondent

An airport source says Nats are now releasing small numbers of aircraft as “trials” at various airports, with a view to ramping up to more regular flights.

Charlotte Simpson
Reporting from Gatwick Airport

I'm at Gatwick and was due to be on the 17:15 flight to Bari, Italy, as I'm due to get married In Puglia on Saturday.

I’ve got my wedding dress with me, I’ve got my fiance with me, but sadly we are not going to be going anywhere tonight.

Our flight is among those that have been cancelled this afternoon because of this disruption with air traffic control.

It's pretty chaotic at the moment, people have just been wondering around looking for help - but from what we've seen they've just had to wait around to be told over the public address system - like us - that their flight is cancelled.

Everyone has been rushing on the phone, trying to call various airlines to try and get re-booked.

Luckily our wedding isn't until Saturday, so we do have a bit of time.

But it isn't the tranquil start to our wedding celebrations that we had imagined unfortunately.

Manish Pandey
Reporting from Malta International Airport

I’m at Malta International Airport, where my flight home to London Gatwick has been cancelled.

The departures board initially showed “delayed” to all UK-bound flights when we arrived, before changing the 21:30 BA flight to cancelled.

The official at the British Airways counter has told us all flights to the UK have been cancelled because of the air traffic issues.

There are a significant number of travellers heading home to the UK.

We’ve been told that accommodation is being worked on, and we will be told through the BA app what the next steps are.

There is frustration from lots of passengers, and the coffee shop in the airport is filling up quickly with exhausted travellers.

For now, the wait continues.

Image source, PA Media

British Airways says it has been informed by the air traffic controller that the "fault has been resolved" but due to the severity of the issue, there will be a "significant knock-on impact for customers and colleagues".

A spokesperson for the airline says it was forced to cancel or divert more than 100 flights this afternoon, "inconveniencing tens of thousands of customers".

This incident was "entirely out of our control and incredibly frustrating for our customers and colleagues," it says, with aircraft and crews ending up out of place.

"We ask customers whose flights have been cancelled not to travel to the airport and to bear with us if they’re trying to get in touch, as our call centres are incredibly busy at the moment.

"Customers due to travel today or tomorrow are able to make changes to their booking on ba.com," it adds.

Theo Whyte
Reporting from Gatwick Airport

There is a long queue snaking back from the service desk at Gatwick airport.

People are frantically checking departure screens and their phones for updates. Others are calling airlines in an attempt to find alternate arrangements.

At the airline check-in desks, passengers are queuing up in front of empty Iberia desks, hoping someone will appear and give them some information.