told

THE under fire boss of air traffic control has been told he “must quit” after a number of UK airports were hit with delays following another technical glitch.

Thousands of passengers saw their flights disrupted after an issue with the National Air Traffic Services [Nats] affected airspace in the north of England and in Scotland.

Holidaymakers are facing lengthy delays after the issue which began at Nats’ Prestwick centre in Scotland.

Airports in Edinburgh, Belfast and Manchester were registering delayed flights and urged passengers to check with their airlines while Luton Airport said domestic flights had been disrupted.

Nats has stressed that the issue was unrelated to a massive outage that saw hundreds of flights cancelled just two weeks ago.

In a statement on the most recent air traffic control outage, a Nats spokesperson confirmed the issue was now fixed – but disruption is still on the cards for many holidaymakers.

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But calls for Nats chief Martin Rolfe to resign have intensified after the latest debacle.

The 51-year-old senior executive of National Air Traffic Services was paid £1.5 million, including £871,000 in bonuses, last year and has already faced questions over his future.

The executive has previously been accused of overseeing a “litany of failures” during his time as CEO of the UK’s air traffic control services.

At least 200 flights departing or arriving into the UK have been cancelled so far today, aviation analytics company Cirium has said.

Ryanair has said more than 25,000 of its passengers are expected to be disrupted after the latest air traffic control incident and called for Rolfe to resign.

Chief operations officer Neal McMahon said: “Just three days after Nats assured airlines and passengers that it had introduced robust ‘mitigation plans’, its flight data processing system has failed again.

“More than 25,000 Ryanair passengers have already suffered disruption, with over 140 Ryanair flights delayed, yet Nats still cannot tell passengers when this disruption will end.

He added: “Rolfe has presided over repeated system failures, repeated passenger disruption and repeated failures to deliver an effective back-up system.

“Enough is enough. Martin Rolfe should resign today.”

Easyjet said in a statement: “A NATS Air Traffic Control system failure in its Prestwick Centre is causing delays to flights with some unable to operate.

“This, once again, calls into question the resilience of NATS’ systems and demonstrates the need for firm actions to prevent these repeated failures.

“We will do all we can minimise the impact of this for our customers and advise anyone due to fly today to check our flight tracker for the latest information.”

The airline said the latest disruption “calls into question the resilience of Nats’ systems.”

The firm said earlier this morning that engineers were working to resolve the issue but that regulations had been imposed to “maintain safety.”

And, British Airways said it is “disappointing” that some customers may experience disruption after “yet another technical fault with Nats”.

A spokesperson for the airline said: “Yet another technical fault with Nats means some of our customers are likely to experience disruption to their travel plans today.

“This is disappointing and whilst it is an issue that is entirely out of our control, we’re doing everything we can to limit the impact on customers and are keeping them updated.”

A Nats statement this afternoon read: “The issue in our Prestwick centre is now fixed. We are working with airports and airlines to safely lift air traffic regulations as quickly as we can to minimise any further disruption.

“Passengers should still check the status of their flight with their airline.

“We apologise for the disruption.”

Passengers tpoday are being advised to check with their airline for information on their flights.

Holidaymakers at Glasgow airport were reportedly been left waiting on the tarmac for hours amid the delays.

Meanwhile, Luton Airport said domestic flights had been disrupted by the air traffic control issue.

And several flights at Manchester Airport have been delayed with passengers warned to expect further disruption.

However, most airports south of Manchester are broadly unaffected by the issue but flights travelling north may be subject to some delays, Nats said.

British Airways and Easyjet have issued messages to passengers hoping to travel today, warning them that some delays are expected.

Highlands and Islands Airports Limited has said flights are being disrupted across all of the airports it operates.

Meanwhile, Belfast International Airport said it is experiencing some delays amid the air traffic control issue.

Passengers and airlines “deserve better”, an aviation industry body has said after the second air traffic control issue within two weeks.

Tim Alderslade, chief executive of Airlines UK, said: “The UK’s ATC (air traffic control) system is critical national infrastructure and it must be resilient enough to keep people moving.

“Passengers and airlines deserve better and the independent CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) report, together with the forthcoming Civil Aviation Bill, must address the underlying weaknesses in the system so that these failures stop happening.”

The previous Nats failure affected thousands of passengers with many stuck abroad amid the chaos.

Nats announced that a “technical issue” with its “flight processing system” had caused the widespread travel chaos just two weeks ago.

A majority of the UK’s biggest airports were brought to a standstill by the failure, which is understood to have been caused by a software error.

It led to calls for Nats chief Martin Rolfe to resign with furious airline executives blaming him for the failure.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander previously demanded Rolfe launch a rapid review into the chaos last week and said that she did not believe the most recent air traffic control issue was “unavoidable.”

He previously faced turbulence in 2023 when he oversaw his first failure in air traffic control, which affected more than 250,000 passengers.

The August bank holiday failure was sparked when a small piece of incorrect data set off a mass system failure lasting just a few hours.

Kieron: Kilmarnock could have won by three or four and it wouldn’t of flattered them. Hibs were so poor tonight. David Gray’s position is hanging by a thread.

Stuart: The players on that pitch have to take as much responsibility as Gray for this result, nowhere near good enough. Amateur performance.

Andy: How can Gray continue to keep his job? The players are not playing for him. The club is a mess. Banning the only fans that bring an atmosphere. Benching three of our best players. So confusing.

Chris: Question the tactics. Thought for long time long ball is desperate and lacks ambition. Pressure indeed on David Gray.

Lee: If we end the game two points off bottom spot then it’s surely time up for the Hibs manager. It’s not a run and recovery from a bad position needed, it’s deliver and results from the get go the support demands for a club of our size.

Stuart: The players on that pitch have to take as much responsibility as David Gray for this result, nowhere near good enough. Amateur performance.

Paul: Long balls to no-one as usual from Hibs and as usual our keeper is a weak link. Gray has to go even if we win as this is awful football. Bring in Neil Lennon or Steve Clarke asap before our season drifts to nothing as usual.

Andy: How can Gray continue to keep his job? The players are not playing for him. The club is a mess. Banning the only fans that bring an atmosphere. Benching three of our best players. So confusing.

Brian: Worst backline in Scotland, midfielders trot about like headless chickens, feel sorry for strikers. Gray clueless. No plan. No tactics. Blah, blah, blah after game as usual but won’t resign. Board have to act.

SMcDhfc: David Gray has lost the team, it was obvious tonight. As an attacking force, we were shocking, lots of huffing and puffing but not one real effort on target. The players should be embarrassed after that display, but they will get the result they are after, Gray sacked.

Craig: I like Gray but believe it’s time he goes. He has one formation. It’s just not good enough. But, if he goes, Malky MacKay [director of football] should go too. His signings have been terrible.

WASHINGTON: Jason Eaton insisted he was acting on orders from the CIA and Mossad when he shot three Palestinian college students who were walking past his home a few days after Thanksgiving. He said the US and Israeli intelligence agencies transmitted the messages to him via FM radio and that God was commanding him to protect his Jewish neighbors.

Eaton’s claims were at the heart of his insanity defens e as he went on trial Monday on attempted murder charges in a case that shook Burlington, Vermont, and reverberated in the West Bank, where the three wounded men grew up and became friends as schoolmates in Ramallah before moving to the US for college.

The November 2023 shooting, weeks after the start of the Israel-Hamas war, spawned calls for a hate crime investigation. But no hate crime charges were filed as questions persisted about whether anti-Palestinian animus, an altered mental state or something else had compelled Eaton to open fire on Hisham Awartani, Tahseen Aliahmad and Kinnan Abdalhamid, who were all 20 at the time.

The men testified one after another as Eaton, now 51, watched stoically from the defense table in a Burlington courtroom. He has pleaded not guilty but doesn’t dispute that he was the shooter. If convicted, he faces up to life in prison. If found not guilty by reason of insanity, he could be ordered to undergo mental health treatment.

Defense lawyer Joshua O’Hara, previewing testimony from a defense psychiatrist, told jurors in an opening statement that Eaton was suffering from a delusional, psychotic disorder after losing his job at a credit union two weeks before the shooting.

While listening to a local NPR affiliate, Eaton believed he was hearing messages that he attributed to the CIA, O’Hara said. At first, the messages were encouraging and validating, the lawyer said, but subsequent messages turned dark, insisting that Eaton “has to go out and shoot somebody.”

Prosecutor Sally Adams told jurors that a state psychiatrist who is slated to testify concluded that Eaton did not have a mental disease or defect. Evidence will show he intended to kill the men, was not legally justified in shooting them, and does not meet the test of legal insanity, Adams said.

Authorities found three shotguns in Eaton’s apartment and a Ruger .380-caliber handgun that crime lab testing concluded was the gun used in the shooting, Adams said. Eaton had purchased the gun seven months earlier from a Vermont gun store.

“If the defense tries to focus on the story that Mr. Eaton tells about why he intended to kill these three young men, that story is only part of the whole picture,” said Adams, the chief administrative deputy at the Chittenden County State’s Attorney’s Office.

Awartani, Aliahmad and Abdalhamid, all of whom are now 23, told jurors of their holiday weekend visit to Awartani’s grandmother’s house, a trip to a bowling alley to celebrate his twin cousins’ birthday, and the walk they took near the University of Vermont campus after dusk that ended in bloodshed.

Awartani, who was studying at Brown University in Rhode Island at the time, said they were smoking cigarettes and speaking a mix of English and Arabic. Two of them said they were wearing traditional Palestinian scarves known as keffiyehs. Awartani said he first noticed Eaton standing on a porch as they approached the apartment house where he lived.

Within seconds, Awartani said, Eaton was off the porch and walking toward them. His face was expressionless and he didn’t say anything. As Eaton got to about five to 10 feet (1.5 to 3 meters) away, “he pulled out a handgun and started shooting at us,” said Awartani, who was paralyzed from the waist down in the shooting and now uses a wheelchair.

Jacob Pyne, who lived in a different apartment in the same house as Eaton, testified that he heard four to six gunshots, followed by footsteps going up the stairs of the apartment house. He said he ran outside and heard two men speaking, one of whom was more vocal and yelling, “I’ve been shot, help me.” He then brought the men blankets and called 911.

Abdalhamid, a student at Haverford College near Philadelphia, said he fled and hid behind another home after seeing Aliahmad fall to the ground. He said he only realized later when he sat down that he had also been wounded. Awartani was shot in the chest and the bullet ricocheted off his scapula, causing paraplegia in his spinal cord. Aliahmad, who was a student at Trinity College in Connecticut, was struck in the collarbone, and Abdalhamid was shot in the right buttock.

O’Hara, the supervising attorney at the Chittenden County Public Defender Office, told jurors that Eaton was confused by the messages he said he was receiving, and became convinced that the CIA and Mossad were enlisting him into “overwatch duty” to protect a Jewish family living across the street.

“These were delusions,” O’Hara said. “He believed in the moment that he was doing something that was right. He had been commanded to do this. And that he did not have the ability to appreciate the wrongfulness of his conduct in the moment because he believed he’d been instructed to do this by a government agency or God.”

Avril, 77, was recently reunited with her daughter Eleanor after 60 years on Long Lost Family after being told she’d never find her child

A Long Lost Family star has made an emotional admission after being told for years that she would never find her daughter.

Avril, now 77, was only 15-years-old when she became pregnant, her mum then shipped her off to a mother and baby home in Carlisle, where she gave birth to a baby girl she called Michelle.

At only eight-weeks-old, Avril gave Michelle up for adoption and she was renamed Eleanor. Avril sought the help of Long Lost Family’s Davina McCall and Nicky Campbell, who travelled to Newcastle, to find her daughter, where she was emotionally reunited after 60 years apart on the ITV show.

However, this wasn’t Avril’s, who also has daughter Sharon, first attempt to reconnect with her first child, having previously contacted a rival programme to assist her in finding her long-lost daughter.

Speaking to Express.co.uk, Avril admitted that The Trisha Goddard Show rejected her because they believed they would never locate her. She explained: “I was listed on a couple of adoption agencies. I tried The Trisha Goddard Show, and she used to help people find their family.”

The ITV programme, which broadcast on Channel 5 from 2004 to 2012, regularly featured emotional family reunions, deep-rooted family secrets or disputes concerning adopted children.

But after reviewing Avril’s case, Channel 5 bosses conceded that even with the programme’s resources, they wouldn’t be able to trace her daughter, reports the Express.

She recalled: “Basically, I was told that I would never be able to find her because she had been issued a new birth certificate.

“So that led me to believe that there wouldn’t be an original birth certificate, and I was told that by two or three different professional people. But after 30 years, you just think, ‘Well, there’s not much else I can do. Hopefully, she might be able to find me’, but you just don’t know.”

The TV star went on to share that her other daughter, Sharon, proved to be her greatest supporter when she considered approaching another television programme for assistance. She said: “I have another daughter, Sharon, and I told her about Michelle.

“She was the one who said, ‘Yes, you should do it’. So that’s what I did. I wrote to Long Lost Family, and it went from there.”

The mother and daughter were eventually reunited on Eleanor’s birthday, with Avril telling her: “There aren’t any words to tell you, Eleanor. That I’ve always loved you and that you’re still mine. You’re my child.”

It comes as the reunited mother and daughter recently appeared on This Morning, where Avril said of meeting for the first time and if they had an instant bond: “Yeah, she was back in my arms where she belongs.”

The competition series fronted by Gary Lineker took an uncomfortable turn as lies told by one of the cast finally came to light

ITV’s The Box cast were stunned after learning their co-star had lied to them.

The star-studded competition series sees celebrities taken to a series of locations where they are then given a challenging task to complete. As per ITV’s synopsis: “Plunged into the unknown while enclosed in a box, 10 celebrities emerge in mystery locations to face their fears in tricky challenges.”

While the line-up initially featured 10 famous faces, that has now been whittled down to just eight at the start of the third episode, which aired this evening (September 12). Remaining in the contest was YouTuber Danny Aarons; comedian Ellie Taylor; reality star Joey Essex; JLS star JB Gill; The Chase’s Jenny Ryan; former politician John Bercow; presenter Ranvir Singh and Love Island star Shakira Khan.

The opening challenge saw the cast thrust into a debate at the prestigious Oxford Union in front of a packed audience. Their debating partner was a fellow celebrity, with reality stars Joey and Shakira going head-to-head in an argument over whether cats or dogs made the better pet.

Just before the start of their debate, Shakira revealed that not only had she been Head Girl at her school, but that she had also been “head of the debate club”, leaving the audience erupting into gasps and Joey immediately doubting his chances at a win.

“I’ve no chance, have I?” he said, before show host Gary Lineker revealed that Joey had to argue for cats being better pets, while Shakira was assigned the counter-argument during which she claimed a scar on her face had been at the hands of a cat.

Despite his passion for the subject matter, Shakira was ultimately crowned the winner of their debate by the watching audience. However, when Gary brought the cast together later on, it emerged Shakira had not been entirely honest.

“Shakira, as head of the school debating society how relieved were you not to lose to Joey Essex?” Gary asked, prompting a sheepish admission from the Love Island star.

“That was actually a fib Gary,” she started, as a stunned Gary replied: “It was a fib was it? I didn’t think you had that in you.”

“The scar from my chin is also not from a cat,” Shakira added, leaving her co-stars open-mouthed. “So a few white lies don’t hurt in politics.”

Following the admission, her co-star Aaron fumed: “Shakira has shown her true colours today. She lied to the audience and I think that shows a snake.”

The Box continues tomorrow night at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX. Episodes 3 and 4 are also available to stream now on ITVX.

WASHINGTON — The widow of an airman killed on a combat mission in the Middle East said it took a viral social media post to get resolution from the Pentagon on issues related to her husband’s benefits and basic pay months after his death.

Maj. Alex Klinner, 33, was one of six crew members of a KC-135 refueling aircraft that crashed in western Iraq in March while supporting operations against Iran. He’s one of 18 U.S. service members killed, along with 790 wounded, since the war began more than six months ago.

The Air Force reached out to his widow, Libby Klinner, this week to clarify that his final paycheck would include hazard pay and combat-related tax breaks. This occurred after she voiced frustration on social media at being told by a military officer assigned to support her after her husband’s death that he was ineligible for those benefits because “we were not at war.”

“My husband lost his life because we’re in a war, and then I was told that because it’s not technically a war, we lose out on something,” Klinner told the Associated Press. “It all comes down to principle.”

Trump administration is rejecting the ‘war’ label for current Iran operations

Her post, made over the weekend, gained national attention. Vice President JD Vance promised to look into her case after being asked about it during a White House briefing on Thursday.

“We want to be as helpful as we can and ensure she gets everything that she is entitled to,” Vance said. “My message to her would be, ‘We love ya, we’re grateful for the sacrifice and we very much take very seriously our commitment to get you what you need to get.’”

In response to a separate question, Vance rejected the use of the word “war” to characterize U.S. fighting in Iran, saying that “there is no active shooting.” The military has launched strikes against targets in Iran twice this week, and Iran has retaliated by firing on U.S. allies in the Gulf.

On Friday, President Trump called U.S. strikes “intermittent” and defended Vance’s comments.

“I call it a military conflict because it’s small potatoes for us,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

In late July, the Trump administration created a new, separate category in the Pentagon’s casualty count system for those killed and wounded in renewed U.S.-Iran fighting. Pentagon officials said the change was necessary because “Operation Epic Fury,” the original name for combat operations against Tehran, had ended. Since July 7, all U.S. casualties in the Middle East have been tallied under “Overseas Operations.”

Widow says the Air Force has clarified the issues about her husband’s pay

Libby Klinner said Air Force officials contacted her this week to say they were initiating a review of her husband’s pay. The Air Force acknowledged to her Thursday that it had initially provided inaccurate information and clarified that she was receiving the full pay and benefits her husband was owed, she said.

She said she was told that her husband’s paycheck had already included but incorrectly itemized the combat-related hazard pay and tax breaks.

The pay incentives commonly known as “combat pay” are $225 per month and are conditioned not on a formal war declaration, but on the service member being in an area where there is “grave danger of physical injury” or of being “killed, injured, or wounded by a hostile fire event,” according to a military website.

Alex Klinner’s final paycheck would have included half that amount since troops are paid twice per month. It is difficult to calculate how much in federal tax breaks Klinner would have been receiving without more information.

Klinner declined to specify the amount of money she was initially told her husband, an eight-year Air Force veteran from Birmingham, Ala., would be ineligible to receive.

The Air Force says it’s committed to offering information and support

The Air Force said officials spoke with Klinner this week to “ensure all her questions are fully addressed” and confirmed that “all eligible combat theater benefits were included” in her husband’s pay.

“We remain committed to providing clear information and continued support to Mrs. Klinner, as well as all the families of the Airmen who died in the KC-135 crash,” the Air Force added.

Broadly, errors in pay in the military are very common because service members can often gain or lose eligibility for a variety of payments depending on their deployment status, duty location or even family factors. As a result, unlike their civilian counterparts, some troops can see their paychecks change many times a year, depending on many factors — something that also increases the likelihood of errors.

A GoFundMe for Libby Klinner and her three young children, launched in the days after her husband’s death, has raised more than $1.5 million.

Klinner said she hoped that by speaking out, she could ensure other grieving families receive clear information from the outset.

“I am very fortunate to have a significant support system around us and a platform to advocate for myself and for my kids. Other families may not have those resources,” she said. “If I can do anything to make this awful situation a little bit easier for someone else to navigate, then I am more than willing to do so.”

Brook and Toropin write for the Associated Press. Brook reported from New Orleans.

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers is pressing the Army to explain why it told a unit based in Europe to stop specializing in drone warfare, an order that comes as the world’s battlefields rapidly evolve and military tactics increasingly rely on uncrewed systems to fight.

The 173rd Airborne Brigade was building its own drones and practicing the kind of warfare that Ukraine has pioneered against Russia and that Iran has fought against the U.S. — warfare that has killed and wounded American troops. The brigade of 600 soldiers was set up in November to be deployed anywhere that drones were needed.

“We have deep concerns that eliminating this specialized drone unit will limit our ability to learn from allies, particularly the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and hinder our efforts to modernize drone warfare at the speed necessary to compete on the modern battlefield,” the lawmakers said in a letter shared with The Associated Press.

It requests a briefing from the Army to explain its decision and was sent Tuesday to departing Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and Gen. Christopher LaNeve, the Army’s acting chief of staff. It was signed by Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, independent Sen. Angus King of Maine and Republican Rep. Mike Turner of Ohio.

“This specialized unit was a prudent response in a moment when the character of warfare is changing faster than a conventional formation’s ability to adapt,” the lawmakers say.

They said they were particularly keen to understand the data, analysis and process behind the change after less than a year of the drone unit being active. They also want to know if the decision was based on guidance from Pentagon leadership or made internally by the Army.

LaNeve, who is filling in as the Army’s top uniformed officer, recently ordered the battalion to refocus on its core mission of being an airborne infantry unit. The move followed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s sudden ousting of the Army’s prior chief of staff, Gen. Randy George.

Integrating drones into the Army’s tactics was a major focus for George. Last year, he and Driscoll had rolled out what they called the Army Transformation Initiative, which pushed to add “modernized (unmanned aircraft systems) into formations.”

George, who became Army chief of staff under President Joe Biden, regularly spoke about the need to accelerate development of new drone systems and get them in the hands of regular soldiers, not just specialized units. Driscoll supported such efforts and focused on cutting the red tape for military contractors to quickly develop more drones.

After George was ousted by Hegseth without explanation in April, he was replaced by LaNeve. This week, Driscoll submitted his own resignation and later said on social media that Wednesday would be his final full day on the job. A reason for his departure was not publicly revealed, but he was an ally of George, and his tensions with Hegseth have been widely reported.

“We are supportive of the transformative initiatives the Army has taken under Secretary Driscoll’s leadership in this area and would like to see that momentum maintained even as uniformed leadership changes,” the lawmakers wrote.

Toropin and Finley write for the Associated Press. Toropin reported from Nuremberg, Germany.

Hubert Bartkowiak, from Gniezno in Poland, was told he had to pay £8,640 for three rooms for three nights at the Luxor View Hotel in Egypt, or his reservation would be cancelled

Holidaymakers are being told to pay 12 times more for hotel rooms after booking – or face a cancelled reservation. Forward-thinking Hubert Bartkowiak had been looking forward to a trip to Luxor, Egypt, with friends.

The Pole had booked three rooms for four people at the Luxor View Hotel over a year before the holiday, through Booking.com, forking out $1,040 (£768) for three nights, working out at £64 per person, per night. Hubert, from Gniezno, was shocked to receive a message from the hotel demanding 12 times as much, otherwise the booking would be cancelled.

“Please note that prices have increased; for your booking during this period, the room will be $1,300 (£960) a night,” the message read. With each of the three rooms costing £960 a night, he faced a bill of £8,640. When he refused to pay, the hotel worker implied the reservation would be cancelled and the hotel closed “for renovations” if Hubert turned up.

Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com

“The hotel will be closed for renovations. You’re free to leave. You won’t have any rooms,” a message seen by the Mirror reads. After The Mirror contacted Booking.com on Hubert’s behalf, the hotel decided to honour his booking at the original rate.

However, there are many more people heading to Spain, Tunisia, Egypt and other countries in the path of next August’s eclipse who have already had their bookings cancelled as prices spike. “Raising prices I can understand as demand is high, but changing the price after making a reservation or cancelling it for a better offer is simply unfair,” Hubert said.

Another spurned holidaymaker is Kara Wiley. She booked a hotel in Luxor, paying $681 (£504) for three nights, only to receive a message from the owner demanding $3,900 (£2,886). “This is not affordable for me, and my flights are already booked,” she wrote in a post on a Facebook group.

Facebook groups and Reddit threads are full of such horror stories, with many eclipse hunters now worried that they’ll arrive ahead of the August 2 to discover they’ve nowhere to stay.

Such a scenario befell David Tunnicliffe, who booked a villa in Escalona del Prado, Spain, two years before the eclipse this August. “It was just cancelled by the host one day before we were due to arrive for a week. Sucks to be me, I guess!” David said. David was blanked by the accommodation provider, and his emails bounced. Luckily, David managed to book back-up accommodation at the last minute. It cost twice as much, but the booking platform he used agreed to pay the extra expense.

On Monday, August 2 next year, the moon will block the sun starting in the Atlantic Ocean, crossing southern Spain and North Africa, and moving through the Middle East and the Horn of Africa before ending in the Indian Ocean. The event has been dubbed “the eclipse of the century” due to the length of totality. Total darkness will descend for 6 minutes and 23 seconds in some areas, including Luxor. That is roughly three times the duration of this year’s eclipse.

Following the eclipse this August and the buzz that’s generated, accommodation prices for next year have rocketed. In El Palmar, a villa for six people located around 600 metres from the beach will cost €33,129 (£28,379) for one night. Split between the six potential guests, that would be around €5,522 (£4,730) per person.

According to Citizens Advice, customers should check the terms and conditions for the holiday or booking they’ve made to see if they allow the company to increase the price. Look for something like ‘price variation’ – this means the price can change. They can’t increase it if the terms and conditions don’t allow it. Even if the terms and conditions allow price increases, the company can only increase the price because of:

• fuel price rises which mean transport costs have gone up
• changes to taxes or fees by third parties – like tourist taxes
• exchange rates which affect the price of the holiday

The company has to let you know in writing about their plans to increase the price. They also have to give you a reasonable time to tell them if you accept it or want to cancel. If they’re offering another package instead, they must tell you how much it costs.

The company must tell you about the price rise at least 20 days before the package starts and explain why they put the price up. You have the right to cancel the holiday without paying a fee if the increase is more than 8% – you’ll get back any money you’ve already paid.

RAIL commuters have been warned of disruption to services over the bank holiday weekend.

With strike action set to take place, a number of services will be effected on Sunday and Monday.

Travel chaos is expected at East Midlands Railway (EMR) this weekend as members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) are set to walk out in a dispute over safety.

EMR has confirmed plans for a “significantly reduced” timetable for services to and from London on both days.

It has advised passengers to check details before embarking on their journeys and to only travel if absolutely essential this bank holiday weekend.

This Sunday (August 30) will see even further disruption, with no LNER trains running between London King’s Cross and Peterborough as digital signalling upgrades are carried out by Network Rail.

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EMR services to and from London St Pancras are expected to be extremely busy on Sunday, with the increase in demand coinciding with the reduced services.

Meanwhile, Sheffield station and Nottingham station will be very busy, with queues to board services set to be in place.

The strike action comes as the RMT continues to voice concerns about safety issues on some trains.

EMR said it is holding “constructive discussions” with the RMT, meeting with the union six times as it works towards resolving the issues.

Philippa Cresswell, customer experience director at EMR, said the company recognise “how frustrating this disruption will be for customers”.

“We are very sorry for the impact this will have on August bank holiday plans,” she said.

“We strongly advise customers to only travel to or from London if their journey is essential on Sunday, August 30 and Monday, August 31, and to check their full journey, including first and last trains, before setting out.”

Meanwhile, the RMT said its members have been instructed to refuse to work a Class 810 train if a list of specified faults continue, including lack of air-con, door faults, and non-working toilets.

The union’s general secretary Eddie Dempsey said it would ensure representatives will be permanently involved in discussions with both EMR and manufacturers Hitachi to try to improve the situation.

“RMT is demanding that whilst these faults exist and until these trains are shown to be operating properly, they should be taken out of service,” he said.

“It is now time for EMR management to act on the safety concerns of our members.”