Story perspectives

Saturday Thunderstorms Force 900 Heathrow, Gatwick Delays

6/27/2026

Summary

NATS Delays

Thunderstorms on Saturday, 27 June 2026 forced hundreds of flights at Heathrow and Gatwick to be delayed or cancelled.
National Air Traffic Services (NATS) imposed restrictions that widened aircraft gaps, cutting takeoffs and landings per hour.
FlightAware logged 900 delays—474 at Heathrow, 439 at Gatwick—with some lasting up to 11 hours.
British Airways moved a Santiago-to-Heathrow flight to 21:00 BST.
The Met Office kept an amber heat warning until Sunday morning.

Summary

EU No Compensation

Under EU Regulation EC 261/2004, thunderstorms are extraordinary circumstances, so airlines owe no compensation but provide meals and accommodation.
Consumer groups advise keeping receipts because insurers expect a rise in weekend claims as hotel nights and disruptions increase costs.
Airlines have offered rebooking, letting customers shift to later flights or routes without fees.
A points failure at Heathrow Terminal 5 halted Heathrow Express and the Elizabeth line, causing delays to 35 minutes.

History

Historical Context

In April 2010 the eruption of Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull volcano forced Europe’s airspace to shut, cancelling about 95,000 flights and stranding roughly 10 million passengers. The disruption prompted the European Aviation Safety Agency and the EU to tighten contingency protocols and create a crisis-coordination group. Today NATS spacing rules and EC 261/2004 rulings echo those 2010 reforms.

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NATS Delays

Thunderstorms on Saturday, 27 June 2026 forced hundreds of flights at Heathrow and Gatwick to be delayed or cancelled.
National Air Traffic Services (NATS) imposed restrictions that widened aircraft gaps, cutting takeoffs and landings per hour.
FlightAware logged 900 delays—474 at Heathrow, 439 at Gatwick—with some lasting up to 11 hours.
British Airways moved a Santiago-to-Heathrow flight to 21:00 BST.
The Met Office kept an amber heat warning until Sunday morning.

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