Airspace Disruptions Strand Thousands Across Europe

Thousands of passengers across Europe have faced significant disruptions due to a communications failure that led to the closure of Greek airspace. The incident occurred on Sunday morning, prompting widespread cancellations and delays, especially at major airports such as Athens and Thessaloniki.

Disruption Overview

The communications breakdown affected the air traffic control systems, halting all arrivals and departures. Officials are investigating the cause of the outage, believed to involve a failure in the radio system. This technical fault resulted in nearly empty airspace over Greece on Sunday.

Impact on Airports

• Thessaloniki Airport closed completely.
• Athens International Airport experienced severe disruptions with over 90 flights affected.
• Departures from other major cities including Dublin, Barcelona, and Paris were forced to return.
• Internal flights faced cancellations and significant delays.

While some departures have resumed, inbound flights are still being diverted or sent back to their point of origin. Reports indicated that 35 aircraft per hour have been permitted to take off from Athens, but arrivals remain problematic.

Passenger Experiences

Travelers have expressed frustration over the lack of information available during this chaotic situation. One passenger, impacted by the delays, reported, “I have no updates and my flight is not showing on the departures board.”

Another traveler, whose flight to Rhodes was diverted back to Athens, felt abandoned: “Since the diversion, we have received no information.”

Assistance and Alternatives

To alleviate the situation in Greece, neighboring countries like Italy, Turkey, and Cyprus have offered assistance. Domestic travelers may consider utilizing Greece’s rail network, although this option is considerably slower.

Continuing Investigations

According to Panagiotis Psarros, chair of the Association of Greek Air Traffic Controllers, communication with aircraft was abruptly lost, indicating a critical failure within the air traffic control system. Preliminary investigations suggest that the issue may be linked to an antenna failure in the Gerania Mountains, located near Athens.

As the situation evolves, passengers continue to wait for updates on their flights and potential resolutions to the airspace disruptions in Europe.