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Travel chaos as flights and trains cancelled in Spain and Portugal over power outage – your holiday rights

Published on April 28, 2025 at 12:03 PM

A POWER outage across Spain and Portugal has resulted in flight cancellations at a number of airports, as well as huge delays and train station closures.

Red Eléctrica,‘s national grid operator, confirmed that the

Control tower at Barajas International Airport in Madrid, Spain.
A power outage across Spain and Portugal has seen flights cancelled and delayed
A large crowd of people waiting in a dark hallway at the Madrid Open tennis tournament during a power outage.
Metro stations have been left in darkness and forced to close

This includes blackouts across Madrid, Seville, Malaga and Barcelona, as well as Lisbon and the Algarve and some southern areas of France.

Spanish airport operator Aena confirmed that Madrid's Barajas Airport has been hit the hardest, with flight cancellations and delays.

And the main airport in Barcelona, while still operational, has seen delays in baggage claim, with huge waits for passengers and some even leaving their suitcases behind.

Across Portugal, Lisbon Airport is also reporting operational outages at the check in desks.

Even in France, Perpignan-Rivesaltes Airport has temporarily suspended some operations.

It has also affected a huge number of train lines, with some going down entirely.

One person said on social media: “The entire Metronetwork (including the electricity) and traffic lights in centralMadridjust went down.

“They made us leave… and the mobile network performance is also very poor.”

A spokesperson for the metro line said on social media: “At this time, the service on the Madrid commuter networkis out of servicedue to a power outage.”

The Sun's Head of Travel Lisa Minot said in regards to train delays or cancellations: “Under EU rail regulations, if the delay or cancellation means you will arrive in your final destination more than an hour delayed you have the right to choose between:

  • A refund of your ticket within 30 days and a return journey to your initial point of departure if the cancelled train prevents you from fulfilling the purpose of your trip.
  • Continue or re-routing your journey to reach your final destination at the earliest opportunity at no extra cost.
  • Continue or re-route your journey at a later date of your choosing at no additional cost. This includes includes alternative transport to get you to your final destination if the service is suspended.
  • Food and drink depending on the length of the delay.”

Red Eléctrica said that “the causes are being analysed and all resources are being dedicated to resolving it”.

Crowd of people outside a building during a power outage.
Tourists were forced to leave the Madrid Open

More to follow… For the latest news on this story keep checking back at The Sun Online

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