Cyberattack Cripples European Airports, Raising Alarms Over Aviation Security
A recent cyber-attack crippled operations at airports in London, Brussels, and Berlin, “causing flight cancellations and huge delays for thousands of passengers over the following two days” (as reported by CBS News).The attack reportedly compromised the check-in software of Collins Aerospace, one of the world’s largest aviation and defense companies. Electronic failures compelled staff at Europe’s major air hubs to fall back on manual methods such as handwritten passes and backup laptops.
This intrusion exposes continent-wide vulnerabilities in air transport security systems. Aviation and travel expert Paul Charles described Collins Aerospace’s security breach as “deeply worrying,” noting “that a company of that stature, which normally has such resilient systems in place, has been affected” in what appears to be “a very clever cyberattack indeed.” By striking at the core systems that enable airlines to check in passengers at different airports, attackers managed to paralyze operations across the network, underscoring just how fragile integrated systems can be when confronted with malicious actors.
This problem is growing. The aviation sector experienced a 600 percent increase in cyberattacks between 2024 to 2025. “Cyberattacks and tech outages have disrupted airports around the world in recent years, as air travel increasingly relies on online, interconnected systems,” CBS notes.
This incident makes clear that efficiency-driven technologies are not immune to infiltration—they are often the most attractive targets. Companies, especially of the Collins Aerospace caliber, cannot sacrifice cybersecurity for the sake of efficiency.
Although the attackers’ identity and motives remain under investigation, policymakers, businesses, and consumers must take note of the urgent lessons that arise from the incident. The compromise of such a sophisticated centralized system is not simply a technical shortcoming—it is a stark warning. In a hyper-connected world, integrated digital platforms boost efficiency, but they also amplify vulnerability: one successful breach can trigger disruption across multiple locations.
When airports and airlines underinvest in cybersecurity, the consequences ripple outward, inflicting real economic harm and burdening everyday citizens.
Published on October 2, 2025