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Date Published: 09/09/2026

UK air traffic control problem caused hours of chaos at Alicante airport yesterday, but flights are back on track

A technical issue at British terminals triggered cancellations and delays across routes to and from England and Ireland, with the Manchester flight pushed back by three hours

If you were travelling through Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport yesterday evening, you'll know it wasn't the smoothest experience. A technical problem at the UK's National Air Traffic Services triggered a wave of cancellations and delays that threw the airport's schedule into disarray for more than two hours, with around ten flights cancelled and more than a dozen delayed at the peak of the disruption.

NATS issued the alert at 5.00pm on Tuesday, prompting immediate action from airlines. EasyJet and Ryanair were among the first to register cancellations, and the knock-on effect spread quickly across routes connecting Alicante with English and Irish cities. AENA issued an advisory to passengers planning to travel to the UK as the scale of the disruption became clear.

The good news is that NATS announced the problem had been resolved shortly after 7.00pm, and Alicante Airport confirmed that normal operations were expected to resume during the evening. Flights to destinations outside the affected UK corridor continued without disruption throughout.

Among the specific delays logged, the Gatwick flight operated by Vueling, Iberia and British Airways, originally due in at 7.50pm, was pushed back to 9.28pm. Arrivals from Birmingham and Dublin, operated by Ryanair and Aer Lingus respectively, also saw significant delays. The Manchester connection was the worst affected, shifting from its scheduled 8.30pm arrival to midnight.

The incident is a reminder of just how dependent Alicante Airport is on UK connections. More than 70% of passenger traffic at the Miguel Hernández terminal is British, which means any disruption to UK air traffic control hits the airport harder than most. If you have flights coming up to the London or Bristol area in the next day or two, it's worth checking directly with your airline to confirm everything is running normally before heading to the airport.

You might also be interested in: British tourists are leading the way as Alicante-Elche airport heads for a record year

Image: wikicommons

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