London Gatwick is enduring a second consecutive day of significant flight disruption, as air travel across Europe faces one of its most difficult weeks of the year.
What is happening at Gatwick
On Monday 5 October, Gatwick logged 464 delays and 10 cancellations, a 55 percent departure delay rate and 60 percent arrival delay rate. On Tuesday 6 October, at least 14 easyJet flights were confirmed delayed across both terminals, with routes to Jersey, Sardinia, Corfu, Italy, Scotland, Morocco, the Greek islands, Turkey, Germany and France pushed back by 75 minutes to two hours.
The wider European picture
The disruption stretches far beyond Sussex. Across 20 major European airports, 241 cancellations and 3,794 delays have been recorded, driven by the lingering effects of weekend storms in Catalonia, tight hub capacity and air traffic flow restrictions across southwestern European airspace. Barcelona, Amsterdam Schiphol and Paris Charles de Gaulle are among the worst hit, while Heathrow recorded 195 delays and 56 cancellations.
Why it keeps cascading
European airline networks are tightly coupled: a late inbound aircraft from one hub creates knock-on delays at the next. EasyJet alone recorded 739 delays across its network on Monday at a 39 percent delay rate. With Heathrow running at very high capacity, even small dips in flow rates leave little margin to absorb the variance.
Your rights if you are delayed
- For delays of 3 hours or more on arrival that are the airline’s responsibility, fixed compensation applies: up to 520 pounds per passenger under UK261 for UK departures
- Weather-related disruption is generally treated as an extraordinary circumstance, so cash compensation may not apply, but the airline must still provide care including meals, refreshments and hotels for overnight delays
- You are always entitled to a refund or rerouting if your flight is cancelled
- Keep every receipt and screenshot all airline communications
What to do now
Check your flight status with your airline before leaving for the airport, allow extra time for connections, and make sure your contact details are up to date so the airline can reach you about changes. If you are travelling in the coming days, consider travel insurance that covers disruption.
