Holidays misery as IT fallout hits more flights

THOUSANDS of Britons remained stranded abroad yesterday after more flights were cancelled in the wake of last week's worldwide IT crash as Microsoft revealed 8.5 million computers were hit.

- Mark Reynolds

Experts warned it could take weeks for systems to fully recover with more flight delays and cancellations expected in the coming days.

Some passengers stuck overseas were warned they may not be able to get home until Wednesday after flights going to, from or flying in the UK continued to be disrupted.

More than 20,000 Brits were stranded abroad at the weekend as airlines fought to deal with the backlog. The initial mass breakdown saw around 8,000 flights cancelled or disrupted across the globe. But while businesses and services were yesterday slowly recovering, the knock-on effects were dragging on.

Thousands of Britons were left sleeping on airport floors over the weekend both home and abroad - amid the backlog of flights.

Gatwick, Heathrow, Manchester airport and Belfast airport all warned they could still be affected in the coming days.

Bad weather in Europe made the problems worse.