London (AFP) – Major European airports including Brussels, Berlin, and London’s Heathrow were Saturday hit by a cyberattack on check-in systems that caused cancellations and long delays for thousands of passengers. Dublin and Cork airports in Ireland were also affected. Dublin airport said on X that it was experiencing “minor impacts” from “a Europe-wide software issue.” According to aviation watchdog Eurocontrol, the airports were “reporting disruptions in IT systems related to passenger handling.”
At least 10 flights were cancelled at Brussels Airport, and another 17 were delayed by over an hour after the system was hit by a “cyberattack” late Friday, the airport said. “We have become aware of a cyber-related disruption to our MUSE software in select airports,” airport service provider Collins Aerospace told AFP. “The impact is limited to electronic customer check-in and baggage drop,” added Collins Aerospace, which claims to have a presence in 170 airports globally. Brussels airport noted that the attack was still having a “large impact” on flight schedules on Saturday.
“In terms of information, it’s really not good at all; people are waiting, people don’t know,” said Nancy Steiner, 53, while surveying the long queues of passengers at Brussels airport. Airlines had been asked to cancel half their flights to and from Brussels between 0400 GMT on Saturday and 0200 GMT on Monday due to the attack, Eurocontrol reported. AFPTV reporters filmed large queues at Brussels as passengers anxiously monitored announcement boards showing many flight delays.
London’s Heathrow Airport — the busiest in Europe — acknowledged that its check-in and boarding systems, also provided by Collins Aerospace, were affected by a “technical issue” that “may cause delays for departing passengers.”
– ‘Queues Not Moving’ –
“They didn’t tell us anything. It’s always crowded here, but today is like extra,” said a 41-year-old architect named Rowan, waiting in Heathrow. “If the system is down they should delay the flight. That’s what I’m hoping,” she added, waiting in the packed check-in area at Heathrow’s Terminal 4 for a Saudia Airlines flight to Jeddah. Another woman waiting for an Air Algerie flight to Algeria mentioned she had been queueing for over an hour to check in. “They said they’re doing everything manually. That’s all they’ve told us,” said the 30-year-old, who preferred not to give her name.
Pranit Nevrekar, 32, dropping his parents off for the Jeddah flight, stated, “We’ve been told there’s a disruption across Europe. So the check-in system isn’t working; they’re doing everything manually.” The Berlin Airport website indicated that “due to a technical issue at a system provider operating across Europe, there are longer waiting times at check-in.”
Collins Aerospace emphasized that it was “actively working to resolve the issue and restore full functionality to our customers as quickly as possible.” The aviation tech company, which specializes in digital and data processing services, is a subsidiary of the American aerospace and defense group RTX, formerly known as Raytheon.
Cyberattacks and tech outages have disrupted airports around the world in recent years, from Japan to Germany, as air travel increasingly relies on online, interconnected systems. Aviation expert Anita Mendiratta, who is a special adviser to the Secretary-General of UN tourism, told AFP it was difficult to determine who was behind the attack. However, she stressed that it was “a disruption caused to software, not a specific airport,” and it was important to try to “contain the contagion.”
The aviation sector saw a dramatic 600 percent increase in cyberattacks from 2024 to 2025, according to a report by French aerospace company Thales released in June. “From airlines and airports to navigation systems and suppliers, every link in the chain is vulnerable to attack,” the report warned, pointing out that the strategically and economically important sector had become a “prime target” for cyberattacks.
© 2024 AFP
