Passengers warned to check with their airline as some flights cancelled due to blackouts

LAST UPDATE | 28 Apr

THREE FLIGHTS HAVE been cancelled at Dublin Airport as a result of widespread blackouts in Spain and Portugal. 

Dublin Airport said that as of 8pm, a total of six inbound flights have been cancelled – two from Faro, two from Lisbon, one from Seville and one from Alicante.

Seven outbound flights have also been cancelled. These include flights to Alicante, Madrid, Santiago, Marrakech, Lisbon and two flights to Faro.

“Further disruption over the remainder of this evening and into tomorrow are possible and – as always – passengers should check directly with their airline for updates regarding their flight,” it said.

Irish woman Dearbhla Pepper told The Journal that her flight from Faro to Dublin was cancelled this afternoon. 

Dearbhla, who was meant to be returning to Ireland after a trip to Portugal for a hen party, said that she and her group “had to find out through an app” that their flight had been cancelled.

“We were just waiting on the bus, and it stopped then for a bit and we thought that we were waiting on the cabin crew, and then a man came in and said, ‘You’re going to have to get off this bus’.

“We got off and Ryanair wasn’t telling us anything, and then they eventually just said it’s probably going to be cancelled.

“We had to find out through an app.”

The exact reason behind the vast blackout has yet to be uncovered, but millions of people have been affected as a result. It has impacted mobile phone networks, public transport, and internet.

The president of the European Council Antonio Costa has said there are “no indications” that it is the result of a cyber attack.

Spanish generator Red Electrica said the incident is being assessed, adding that restoring power to large parts of the country could take six to 10 hours.