UK air traffic control rules out cyber attack after Heathrow disruption affects 1,300 flights

Martin Rolfe, head of U.K. air traffic control services, stated he does not believe a cyber attack caused the software failure that disrupted passengers at London Heathrow airport. He told BBC Radio 4's Today program on Wednesday that authorities have ruled out hackers and called the incident different from anything seen in 50 years of operation. The technical issue occurred on Tuesday but was resolved by 7:30 p.m. local time by National Air Traffic Services. Flight tracking website Flightradar24 reported 1,300 flights were canceled to and from U.K. airports on Tuesday. As of early Wednesday morning, 177 flights remained canceled. Nearly all cancellations happened at Heathrow, though Stansted, Gatwick, Birmingham, and Manchester airports were also severely impacted. The backlog caused severe delays extending into Wednesday because aircraft, crews, and planes were in the wrong locations.