Many flights delayed at UK airports
Flights are being delayed at airports across the UK and
Ireland because of an air traffic control centre fault.
Affected airports include Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Cardiff and Dublin.
The National Air Traffic Control Service (NATS) said its Swanwick centre, in Hampshire, was having "difficulty switching from night time to daytime operation".
Apologising for any delays, NATS added: "Engineers are working to rectify the problem as soon as possible."
Manchester, Southampton, Birmingham and London City airports have also reported delays and are asking passengers to check with their airlines.
A spokesman for Stansted Airport said all of its flights were delayed for up to two hours. Gatwick said 20% of its departures had been delayed, with passengers being warned they may have to wait for "a couple of hours".
The airline Ryanair has warned there will be "significant flight delays and possible cancellations".
Travel reporter Simon Calder told BBC Breakfast: "It is a pretty grim start to the weekend for air travellers."
He warned that early morning delays could lead to cancellations later in the day.
He said there were "lots and lots of delays" at Stansted, while Heathrow Airport had "long delays" of up to 40 minutes in departures.
