Heathrow and European Airports Experience Major Delays from Cyber-Attack

Tue Oct 14 2025 11:58:34 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

A significant cyber-attack has disrupted operations at Heathrow and multiple European airports, prompting manual check-ins and reports of long queues. The incident raises concerns about airport infrastructure security.

Heathrow Airport and several others across Europe are grappling with delays caused by a cyber-attack that affected an electronic check-in and baggage system. Passengers report long waiting times as airports revert to manual check-in processes. RTX, the parent company of Collins Aerospace, which operates the affected systems, confirmed the disruption and is working to resolve the issues quickly. While British Airways remains operational with a backup system, the incident has led to hundreds of flight delays, particularly at Brussels and Berlin airports.

Heathrow is among several European airports hit by a cyber-attack affecting an electronic check-in and baggage system.

The airport warned of possible delays due to a technical issue affecting software provided by Collins Aerospace to several airlines.

Brussels Airport said a cyber-attack on Friday night meant passengers were being checked in and boarded manually, while Berlin's Brandenburg Airport also reported longer waiting times due to the problem.

RTX, which owns Collins Aerospace, said it was aware of a cyber-related disruption to its system in select airports and that it was working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.

The company added: The impact is limited to electronic customer check-in and baggage drop and can be mitigated with manual check-in operations. It said the attack hit its Muse software - which allows different airlines to use the same check-in desks and boarding gates at an airport, rather than requiring their own.

The BBC understands that British Airways is operating as normal using a back-up system, but that most other airlines operating from Heathrow have been affected.

Hundreds of flights have been delayed at the airports throughout Saturday, according to flight tracker FlightAware.

Lucy Spencer said she had been queuing to check in for a Malaysia Airlines flight for more than two hours, and that staff were manually tagging luggage and checking passengers in over the phone.

Another passenger, Monazza Aslam, said she had been sat on the tarmac for over an hour with no idea when we will fly, having already missed her onward connection at Doha.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said she was aware of the incident and was getting regular updates and monitoring the situation.

However, Luke Agger-Joynes said that while queues in Terminal 3 were much larger than normal, the airline for his US flight and the airport seem to be prepared and the queues are moving much faster than I feared.

Heathrow said additional staff were at hand in check-in areas to help minimise disruption. We advise passengers to check their flight status with their airline before travelling to the airport and arrive no earlier than three hours before a long haul flight or two hours for a domestic flight.

While there are unfounded accusations circulating that this cyber-attack was carried out by Kremlin-sponsored hackers, many recent major hacks have been perpetrated by criminal gangs interested in financial gain. Some cybersecurity experts suggested this could be a ransomware attack, but confirmed details remain unverified.