British Airways has been forced to cancel dozens of flights due to the impact of an IT failure.

On Thursday, BA had to cancel dozens of flights and has cancelled more than 40 additional flights today due to the “knock-on effect of a technical issue” which meant staff were in the wrong location.

It is estimated around 16,000 passengers have been impacted by the cancellations.

Most of the affected flights are departing from or arriving at Heathrow Terminal 5.

But there have also been delays to other flights, while other passengers have been unable to use online check-in.

A statement from BA on Friday said: “While the vast majority of our flights continue to operate today, we have cancelled some of our short-haul flights from Heathrow due to the knock-on effect of a technical issue that we experienced yesterday.”

Affected passengers have been offered the chance to rebook an alternative flight or request a refund.

The IT problems hit the airline at the same time a security guards began a three-day strike over pay at Heathrow Airport.

BA passengers also faced delays back in February due to an IT issue.