British Airways apologises to passengers following 'technical issue'

UK flagship carrier British Airways has issued an apology to passengers after a "technical issue" left them stranded inside US airports.

British Airways said on Tuesday that a fault with a "third-party flight planning supplier" had led to passengers waiting several hours inside departure lounges, with several reporting that they had boarded planes only to be sent back to the airport proper.

The International Airlines Group subsidiary said: "Our flights due to depart the USA tonight are currently delayed due to a technical issue with our third-party flight planning supplier, which we are urgently investigating.

"We're sorry for any disruption this will cause to our customers' plans, our aim is for these flights to depart as quickly as possible."

As of 0900 GMT, IAG shares were down 0.95% at 128.82p.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com