Major European Airports including London's Heathrow hit by check-in delays after cyberattack

Flights at major European airports faced delays on Saturday after technical problems with check-in systems, which two airports linked to a cyberattack on Friday evening. The disruptions affected Heathrow near London, Berlin-Brandenburg, Brussels, Dublin, and Cork, impacting departing passengers across the continent.

Heathrow, Europe’s busiest airport, and Berlin-Brandenburg, Germany’s third-largest, said the issue involved Collins Aerospace, a U.S.-based provider of check-in and boarding systems. The problem with Collins’ MUSE passenger-processing software caused longer waiting times for travelers.

RTX, Collins’ corporate parent, said in a statement that there was a “cyber-related disruption” at some airports and that teams were working to restore full functionality quickly. The company added that airport staff could switch to manual check-ins to mitigate delays.



At Heathrow’s Terminal 3, staff used megaphones to manage crowds of passengers. Some travelers were still waiting to check in for flights scheduled to depart within minutes. FlightAware reported an average 34-minute delay for departures at Heathrow by early evening.

The MUSE system supports around 300 airlines at 100 airports. RTX said the impact was “limited to electronic customer check-in and baggage drop.”

FlightAware data showed:

• Heathrow: 445 delays, 18 cancellations
  
  
• Brussels: 254 delays, 21 cancellations
  
  
• Berlin-Brandenburg: 202 delays, 2 cancellations
  
  

The delays affected both arrivals and departures, with incoming flights accounting for roughly 40% of delays at Heathrow, 44% at Brussels, and 35% at Berlin-Brandenburg.