Computer System Failure at British Airways Causes Hundreds of Flights to Cancel

British Airways, the British airline, was recently hit by major technical problems, leading to the cancellation of all short-haul flights from Heathrow airport until Saturday. 

In a statement issued to the Insider, British Airways said, "We very much regret that due to the ongoing technical problems we are facing, we have unfortunately had to cancel all short-haul flights from Heathrow today until midday." One can further read in the statement that the British company "anticipates further disruptions during the day."

The airline also confirmed to Reuters that the problem was not due to a cyber attack.

Heathrow Airport also apologized for the situation via its official Twitter.

According to Sky News, British Airways' website and app were down for several hours last Friday, which prevented customers from booking flights or checking in online. Still, British Airways noted that long-haul services at Heathrow and all flights at Gatwick and London City Airport should operate as planned.

Customers can receive a full refund and can choose to reschedule their flights at a later date, according to the airline. One passenger, Ed Hall, told The Press Association that he was stuck on a plane for over an hour after landing at Heathrow Terminal 5. According to himself, this was because the crew could not access any IT systems to find out where passengers could disembark from the plane.

This systems disruption comes after British Airways itself canceled several flights in and out of London airports last week after Storm Eunice hit the UK.