Disruption at multiple European airports – London, Brussels, and Berlin – due to cyber assault, resulting in flight delays and cancellations.
A global air travel crisis unfolded last weekend, with hundreds of flights cancelled in the United States and Europe due to a cyberattack on a software update by CrowdStrike-affiliated company, CrowdStrike Services. The affected software provider, Muse, is a subsidiary of Collins Aerospace, a division of RTX.
The incident at London's Heathrow airport, Europe's busiest, was due to a cyber intrusion against the Muse software managed by Collins Aerospace. Electronic check-in and baggage tagging systems in several terminals were disabled, causing potential delays and cancellations throughout the weekend.
Heathrow Airport has warned passengers of possible disruptions, while Eurocontrol, the pan-European air safety organization, ordered half of the flights from and to Brussels to be cancelled between 04:00 on Saturday and 02:00 on Sunday. Berlin's Brandenburg Airport and Dublin Airport were also affected.
In Dublin, 32 departures experienced delays with an average delay of 27 minutes, according to the Flightradar24 platform. The airport evacuated passengers in Terminal 2 as a precautionary measure, after the detection of a suspicious suitcase. The Army bomb disposal unit and the routine anti-terrorist unit were immediately called in, but the owner of the luggage was later identified.
Brussels Airport confirmed that operations were being carried out manually due to the attack, while Berlin's incident was attributed to a technical problem with a systems provider operating throughout Europe.
Collins Aerospace acknowledged the attack and is working to restore full functionality for its clients as soon as possible. However, the company has only stated that it will provide more details "when they are available". There is no confirmation of the authorship of the current cyberattack or the extent of access that intruders may have gained to the systems.
The British government is closely monitoring the situation and receiving regular updates from Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander. Passengers at affected airports have described scenes of confusion and exhaustion to the media.
Muse is a tool that allows different airlines to share check-in desks and boarding gates in the same facility. The incident has highlighted the complex and interconnected nature of the departure control system, with any disruption potentially causing a domino effect.
As the situation continues to unfold, passengers are advised to check the status of their flights with their airlines before heading to the airport, and to expect potential delays and cancellations. The air travel industry and authorities are working diligently to resolve the issue and restore normal operations as soon as possible.
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