Posted on 09/30/2025 9:10:34 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Last weekend, September 20, a major cyber incident hit multiple European airports, bringing down check-in and boarding systems across London Heathrow, Brussels, and Berlin.
Ground staff were forced to revert to pen-and-paper procedures as baggage and passenger processing systems went offline.
Today, September 24, the UK National Crime Agency (NCA) confirmed that a 40-year-old man had been arrested in West Sussex on suspicion of offences under the Computer Misuse Act, as reported by BBC News. The suspect was later released on conditional bail.
Cyberattack throws Brussels Airport into chaos with flights cancelled and major delays
Paul Foster, head of the NCA’s National Cyber Crime Unit, described the arrest as “a positive step” but stressed that the inquiry was at an early stage. He warned: “Cybercrime is a persistent global threat that continues to cause significant disruption to the UK.”
The aftermath of the cyber-attack on European airports
Heathrow: Flights continue to be delayed. Internal staff memos revealed Collins Aerospace is engaged in a major rebuild of the check-in software after failed restarts. Airlines and ground handlers have been told to anticipate disruptions for at least a week.
Brussels: Over 50 outbound flights were cancelled on Sunday, September 21. By Monday, nearly 140 further cancellations were recorded. Berlin: While less extensively reported, check-in and boarding disruptions were also confirmed.
The EU’s cybersecurity agency flagged that ransomware had been deployed during the attack, raising concerns about data compromise and future vulnerabilities.
I’ve flown in nd out of all of those airports. No problems.
I never went to Spain because I totally detest bullfighting , That’s how I protested. Not one dime for that cruel country.
I think you put the wrong article in. I wanted to read about the bullfight protests, not the airport troubles.
When I went to Rota Naval Station, Rota Spain in 1981, part of our orientation was to visit bullfighting arenas, where we were shown the barbed picks that the bullfighters would use to weaken the bulls. They told us all about how a bullfight is done, but I should probably skip the gory details. Fans of bullfighting insisted that the bulls feel no pain during the fight. Yeah, right.
There did not seem to be much opposition to bullfighting back then. It appears things may be changing.
I spent three years in Spain. I never went to a bullfight.
I lived in Spain for three years, from 1981 to 1984. My son was born there. It’s a lovely country, and there is plenty to see without ever going to a bullfight. A town where we lived, Chipiona, holds a festival every year called “La Virgen de la Regla.” It’s an interesting festival, based on a farmer’s finding a doll representing the Virgin Mary in a field. He paraded the doll around town and a serious drought ended. The doll lives in the Chipiona church except for festival time. Another town nearby is where sherry was created. Sherry is an English mispronunciation of the town’s name, Jerez. In Toledo, Spain, master swordsmiths have been making some of the finest swords in the world for centuries, longer (I think) than the Japanese swordsmiths.
There is a lot more to Spanish culture than bullfighting.
Excellent post. I as you love Spain. I am a gringo that speaks Spanish from bingeing raised on the the Mexican border and my Mexican wife.
When we travel in Spain we with rare exception do no go to the tourists areas with the exception of Madrid and their museums which are most magnificent.
We stay where the Spanish tourists stay and it is great. Wife and I speak Spanish to them and just become a Spanish speaking tourist. They do ask where I learned to speak Spanish and I explain from living in Venezuela and growing up on the border with Mexico and my wonderful Mexican wife.
I love my visits to Spain as a non standard tourist. I love going to the small villages and towns and eating in the cafes and street side vendors where no person speaks English. I must admit my very white gringo face speaking good Spanish at first surprising them. My wife’s brown Mexican face surprises them not in the least.
I like Spain a lot.
Now I want to go to Spain and watch bullfighting. I would hate to see it go.
Want to run with the bulls also.
Agreed!
Spain is a lovely country with much more to see than bullfights.
That's interesting.
I took a cruise this spring with stops in Mexico, Colombia, Guatemala, and Panama. Whenever I greet someone in Spanish (I only say "Hola!"), they immediately assume I'm fluent and start to rattle off in Spanish faster than I can understand. A woman in Colombia told me that my accent is very good, and I told her that I had lived in Spain for three years. I think that even though I did not learn Spanish very well, I did manage to pick up on the accent at least passably well.
A young woman who was stationed in Spain while I was there absolutely hated it. She never went off-base, no wonder she was unhappy.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.