Software Glitch Causes Major Air Traffic Disruption, Grounding Thousands of Flights

A software error caused a major air traffic disruption, grounding thousands of flights and affecting hundreds of thousands of passengers.

Editorial Desk

September 18, 2026 One Min Read

POLICY WIRE — London, United Kingdom — A critical software malfunction led to a widespread air traffic disruption that grounded thousands of flights and disrupted travel for hundreds of thousands of passengers last week.

The incident, which occurred on Tuesday, September 8, was traced back to a technical flaw in the system that processes flight plans, causing significant operational challenges across major UK airports including Gatwick and Heathrow.

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British air traffic control operator NATS confirmed the issue stemmed from a software defect, leading to over 2,000 flight cancellations and substantial financial losses for airlines as they worked to reassign crews and manage passenger refunds.

Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)

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