London airports are suspending flights after a technical failure was detected. According to British publications, the problem stems from an error affecting all air traffic control, leading to the closure of the entire airport.

Radar systems, which detect aircraft in airspace, are down at all airports. The system operator is already investigating the outage.

The problems began to be felt in the early afternoon, with only a"technical issue" being reported, which is now known to be more extensive."As a result of a technical issue at the Nats Swanwick air traffic control center, we are limiting the number of aircraft flying over the London area to ensure safety, which is always our first priority," said a company spokesperson.

At this stage we cannot say how long it will be before operations are back to normal.Please check with your airline on the status of your flight.(3/3)

— NATS (@NATS) July 30, 2025

With dozens of flights being diverted to other areas and planes scheduled to depart from Heathrow and Gatwick being grounded, there's no indication of when the situation will return to normal. For now, with the start of the summer holidays in the UK, passengers have already begun to complain about delays and cancellations.

The system operator admitted that it is in contact with the government to ensure a rapid resumption of flights, although it is not possible to calculate the duration of the shutdown.

This issue reminded many passengers of the problem that occurred in the summer of 2023, when more than 700,000 passengers were stranded at London airports due to a technical failure. At the time, the cost of the disruption—to the airlines and the airport—was estimated at around £100 million.