UK airports reopen but warn of "days of delays"

Airlines are scrambling to re-launch flights after UK airports returned to normal operations this morning, but warned passengers they still faced several days of delays.

Passengers are being told to call their airlines or check the airlines' websites to make sure their flights are operating before leaving for the airport.

Many airlines are in a state of confusion with aircraft and crews scattered around the world and they say it will take days before they can get schedules back to normal.

Some airline reservations centres are giving passengers incorrect information, telling them flights are operating when they are not or visa versa.

London's Heathrow Airport, which is one of the busiest in the world, has asked for special permission to open round-the-clock in order to handle the backlog of flights that has built up over the past six days.

The airport, like most others in the UK, normally operates with a night curfew.

British Airways is aiming to run all long-haul flights from Heathrow and Gatwick but its short-haul flights will be subjected to further cancellations. Ryanair said it was reviewing its decision to cancel all flights to and from the UK until Thursday, giving passengers some hope that it might resume flights earlier than planned.

Virgin Atlantic said its schedule was returning to normal with only a small number of delays. EasyJet is flying again, with some cancellations and bmi is 'phasing in' its international and domestic flights.

Charter airlines are also starting to resume holiday flights, though their priority has been to fly stranded passengers back home before flying passengers out of the UK. Thomson said it would resume outbound flights on Thursday but with some cancellations. Thomas Cook said it would resume flights 'very soon'.

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