UK police arrest man after Heathrow, European airports cyberattack

UK police said Wednesday a man in his 40s had been arrested after a cyberattack caused ongoing problems at major European airports including Brussels, Berlin and London's Heathrow.

Britain's National Crime Agency (NCA) said the suspect had been released on conditional bail after officers detained him late Tuesday in West Sussex, southeast England, on suspicion of offences under the Computer Misuse Act.

"Although this arrest is a positive step, the investigation into this incident is in its early stages and remains ongoing," NCA Deputy Director Paul Foster said in a statement.

"Cybercrime is a persistent global threat that continues to cause significant disruption to the UK," he added.

The National Crime Agency said it had launched its investigation after a "cyber incident impacting Collins Aerospace" was reported last Friday.

Collins Aerospace helps several airlines at multiple airports across the world with check-in and baggage drop systems.

The EU's cyber security agency confirmed the disruption was "caused by third-party ransomware incident".

The disruption, still ongoing in a limited way at some European airports Wednesday, interrupted those systems, prompting flight cancellations and delays, in particular on Saturday.

Airlines were forced to carry out manual check-ins and baggage drops, slowing down the procedures.

Collins Aerospace said on Saturday it had "become aware of a cyber-related disruption to our MUSE software in select airports" and that it was "limited to electronic customer check-in and baggage drop".