Heathrow delays after runway lighting affected by a "technical problem"

Thousands of passengers booked to get to and from Heathrow Airport, passing through it, are facing a day of delay and disruption.

A lighting problem of the two runways at the airport was identified early Wednesday morning. A solution has been developed, but many long-haul flights departing from airports around the world from Heathrow have taken place on the ground.

Some significant delays have accumulated, with repercussions on subsequent departures from the airport.

British Airways has delays of two hours or more in arrivals from Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chennai, Cairo, Hyderabad, Los Angeles, Montreal, San Diego, San Jose, Seoul and Toronto, as well as three JFK New flights York.

BA operates more than half of the flights to and from Heathrow. A spokesman for the airline said: "Emergency plans have been activated quickly and we plan to use our full schedule today, with some delays, however.

"We are asking customers who must travel with us today to continue to monitor ba.com for any updates to their flight."

A Heathrow spokesman said, "Our engineering teams are studying a technical problem with the airport runway lighting system. We have activated our emergency plans and both tracks are currently open and operational.

Due to flight arrival problems, many departures over long distances are delayed because the aircraft are poorly positioned.

British Airways anticipates delays of one hour or more on flights to Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Baltimore, Chicago, Las Vegas, Mexico City, Moscow, New York, Riyadh and San Francisco .

The Heathrow spokesman warned that "there could be additional delays:" We expect that there will be delays at the airport throughout the morning. For the latest information, passengers must check the status of their flight with their airline before traveling to the airport.

"We apologize for any impact this could have on our passengers."

There are also problems to and from the airport by train.

The Heathrow Express and Transport for London trains between the airport and central London are severely disrupted by Network Rail's "urgent repair of the track between Hayes & Harlington and London Paddington".

Passengers are warned: "Trains can be canceled, delayed or modified so as not to call all stations.

"The disturbances should continue until around noon."

Elsewhere, Ryanair passengers traveling on Wednesday evening or Thursday morning must check in before 17:00 to avoid airport charges of £ 55. The website of Europe's largest low-cost airline will be closed for 12 hours starting at 5 am No reservation or modification will be possible during this period.