The Civil Aviation Authority has said disruption directly caused by the NATS flight-planning system technical issue on 8 September is likely to amount to an extraordinary circumstance under passenger-rights rules.
In a statement and accompanying industry guidance published on 9 September, the regulator said the incident had caused delays and cancellations involving hundreds of UK inbound and outbound flights. It added that disruption was continuing because airlines were dealing with the operational effects of the earlier cancellations and delays.
The CAA considers disruption directly caused by the NATS issue, as well as directly related knock-on delays and cancellations, likely to fall within the extraordinary-circumstances category. The practical consequence is that fixed compensation for those directly affected delays and cancellations is unlikely to be payable.
That assessment is not a blanket ruling on every passenger’s circumstances. The CAA said its view was illustrative and that each individual claim remained fact-specific. Passengers can still pursue a claim or challenge an airline’s decision, including through the courts.
The regulator also stressed that airlines’ other obligations remain in place. During delays, carriers must look after passengers with proportionate food and drink and, where necessary, hotel accommodation. Airlines should keep passengers informed and explain their rights clearly throughout the recovery period.
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For a cancelled flight, the airline must offer a choice of a refund, re-routing at the earliest opportunity, or re-routing at a later date chosen by the passenger. The CAA acknowledged that finding an alternative at the earliest opportunity can be difficult during major network disruption and will depend on the circumstances of the individual case.
Where an airline cannot provide suitable care or a suitable replacement flight itself, the CAA expects it to repay promptly reasonable expenditure incurred by passengers who make their own arrangements.
The guidance concerns rights under Assimilated Regulation 261/2004. It applies to flights departing the UK and to UK-bound services operated by UK or EU airlines. Different rights can apply to UK-bound flights operated by non-EU carriers.
Heathrow said on 9 September that flights were operating but warned of continuing disruption as airlines repositioned aircraft and crews. Aer Lingus said some of its UK and European services remained affected on the same day, despite the NATS issue having been resolved.
NATS is expected to provide a technical report on the incident shortly. The Government has also asked the CAA to undertake an independent review into what happened and NATS’ future service resilience.
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