An electrical failure in the control tower halted arrivals and departures at Barcelona-El Prat on Wednesday afternoon. The disruption lasted at least two hours, triggering widespread delays and cancellations during one of the busiest travel periods of the year.
Aena said a problem with the control tower’s power supply caused the incident. Dozens of flights scheduled to depart from or arrive in Barcelona were delayed, and at least four afternoon flights were cancelled. While crews worked to resolve the issue, the airport operator advised travelers to check with their airlines for updates.
Ten of the 1,124 flights scheduled for the day were diverted to other airports. Departures were fully operational again by 16:00, while arrivals were expected to resume shortly. Aena confirmed that power to the control tower had been completely restored and normal operations were gradually returning.
The outage occurred in August, traditionally one of Spain’s busiest months for passenger traffic. Some travelers voiced frustration on social media after being kept on board planes for hours; in some cases, delays exceeded two hours. Domestic and international passengers were caught up in the disruption at the height of the summer season.
The volume of traffic shows how widely an interruption at El Prat could affect travel. Aena’s Spanish airport network handled 34,406,581 passengers in July 2026, up 5% year on year, and recorded 284,423 aircraft movements, a 6.1% increase, information from figures reported by La Razón. Barcelona-El Prat handled 5,871,137 passengers that month, ranking among the network’s busiest airports. Its July passenger total was also reported as 5.87 million, up 6% from the previous year.
The outage exposed the vulnerability of critical infrastructure during periods of intense demand: a technical failure can disrupt air travel well beyond the airport. More than 1,100 flights were scheduled at El Prat that day, and the interruption sent aircraft to other airports while passengers faced delays. Residual disruption was expected through the afternoon and evening, though the immediate crisis was resolved within hours.
