Technical issues at NATS Swanwick air traffic control centre are affecting flights to and from London.
A technical issues is affecting flight to and from London with a special big impact for London Heathrow.
London CTA is one of several Class A airspaces over southern England, managed by NATS (National Air Traffic Services), specifically by London Area Control (LAC) at Swanwick.
The CTA manages a volume of controlled airspace extending upwards from a certain altitude, generally connecting multiple control zones (airports).
Purpose of London CTA:
- To manage high volumes of en-route and terminal air traffic flying to/from major London airports like:
- Heathrow (EGLL)
- Gatwick (EGKK)
- Stansted (EGSS)
- Luton (EGGW)
- London City (EGLC)
- And others in the southeast of England.
UPDATE 16:25 BST
Operations haled. London Heathrow has stopped takeoffs and landings.
UPDATE 16:15 BST
London CTA sectors are being regulated with a recovery rate due to previous technical issues.
UPDATE 16:30 BST
NATS says engineers have now restored the system that was affected this afternoon. National Air Traffic Services is in the process of resuming normal operations in the London area.
UPDATE 16:35 BST
Flight operations are slowly resuming at London Heathrow and Gatwick.
UPDATE 16:50 BST
As for exemple, Emirates flight EK31 to London diverted to Paris CDG and Vietnam Airlines VN55 diverted to Frankfurt.
