LONDON: Manchester Airport, the third-busiest airport in the United Kingdom, experienced significant disruptions on Sunday due to a major power cut. The outage resulted in the cancellation of over 100 flights, affecting thousands of passengers.
A spokesperson for Manchester Airport reported that at least 20% of all outgoing and incoming flights were cancelled and warned of further disruptions. Aviation analytics firm Cirium confirmed that 66 departures and 50 inbound flights were cancelled, with easyJet experiencing the most cancellations.
Manchester Airports Group, which also operates London Stansted and East Midlands airports, stated that the power cut impacted the area earlier in the morning. Passengers at two of Manchester Airport’s three terminals were advised to stay away.
Chris Woodroofe, the airport’s managing director, said the power cut caused problems with airport security and baggage systems. While flights resumed in the afternoon, Woodroofe expressed on social media that he expected operations to return to normal by Monday.
The airline Jet2 reported that, in addition to cancelling numerous flights, it was unable to load baggage onto planes as the system remained inoperable. EasyJet warned of “very long queues” for security and advised passengers to travel with only cabin bags.
Several flights were diverted to nearby airports, including London Heathrow and Birmingham. Passengers described the chaos on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), with one traveller detailing a long wait for their bags after a late-night landing and another mentioning being “stuck on the plane.”
