Air travellers are facing another day of disruption at several European airports including Heathrow, after a cyber-attack knocked out a check-in and baggage system.
There were hundreds of delays on Saturday after the software used by several airlines failed, with affected airports boarding passengers using pen and paper.
Brussels Airport said it had no indication yet when the system would be functional again and had asked airlines to cancel half their departing flights.
RTX, which owns software provider Collins Aerospace, stated it was aware of a cyber-related disruption to its system in select airports and hoped to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.
It identified its Muse software, which allows different airlines to use the same check-in desks and boarding gates at an airport, as the affected system. However, the company has yet to disclose what went wrong or how long it expects the outage to last.
Heathrow reported that efforts to resolve the issue were ongoing, apologizing for delays while noting that the vast majority of flights have continued to operate. Passengers are advised to check their flight status before traveling to the airport.
The BBC understands British Airways is operating as normal at the airport using a back-up system, while most other airlines have been affected. Saturday saw long queues at Heathrow with reports indicating 47% of departing flights were delayed.
Passengers reported waiting for hours at check-in, some even checking in by phone due to the system failures. Brussels Airport announced manual check-in would continue and dispatched additional staff to minimize disruptions.
Other European airports like Dublin and Berlin are managing ongoing technical issues but trying to maintain regular schedules as best as possible.
A National Cyber Security Centre spokesperson confirmed they were collaborating with affected parties to understand the escape of the situation, while the European Commission acknowledged the cyber-attack but noted it was not widespread or severe. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander is also receiving regular updates regarding the incident.
