Airport ‘global ground shutdown’ update as IT chaos forces flights with Ryanair, Gatwick, easyJet, Wizz, Jet2, Spain

Air travelers were hit by chaos as they tried to leave after a global internet outage, with airlines and airports reporting problems, with many flights grounded. Ryanair told passengers of “potential disruption” and told travelers to arrive at their airport at least three hours early.

Airports around the world have reported problems with IT systems, meaning check-in delays. Spain said all airports were affected, with Berlin saying people were struggling to check in. United, Delta and American Airlines – which are all based in the United States – have issued a “global ground stop” for all their flights.

Flights currently operating will continue, but no further flights will take off for the time being.

Ryanair has warned of “potential network disruption” due to a global third-party system outage. On the airline’s website, it posted: “Potential network disruptions (Friday July 19) due to a global third party system outage.

“Affected passengers will be notified and all passengers traveling on the network on July 19 should check the Ryanair app for the latest updates to their flight.

“We advise passengers to arrive at the airport 3 hours before their flight to avoid any disruptions. We regret any inconvenience caused to passengers by this third party IT issue, which is beyond Ryanair’s control and affects all airlines operating on the network.”

Meanwhile, at London’s Stansted Airport, some check-ins are being done manually, but “flights continue to operate as normal”. “Our main operating systems are not affected,” says a spokesperson, but “some retail payment machine services have been affected.”

Gatwick’s systems have reportedly been down, with the Berlin airport citing delays due to “technical faults”. Several airports and airlines have reported problems with their IT systems.

Posted on X, External Berlin Airport experiencing check-in delays due to ‘technical fault’. In Spain, an “incident” was reported at all airports in the country. “We are working to resolve it as soon as possible. In the meantime, operations continue with manual systems,” says the Spanish airport operator.

“The disruption has an impact on flights to and from Schiphol,” a spokesman said, adding that it was not yet clear how many flights were affected.

Japan’s Narita Airport, about 60km from Tokyo, says airlines JetStar, Jeju Air, Qantas, HK Express and Spring Japan are experiencing problems with their systems. And in India, Delhi Airport says some services have been temporarily affected.

Edinburgh Airport said: “Here at Edinburgh Airport there have been service disruptions as a computer error has caused the departure screens to malfunction. Departure boards in the main terminal building appeared to freeze, displaying outdated information about gate numbers and departure times – meaning some passengers missed their flights. Earlier this morning the fire alarm in the main terminal building went off, believed to have been triggered by the same computer error. “

Edinburgh Airport said it was working to resolve the issue.

This is a breaking story and will be added to as more information becomes available