Heavy fog triggers UK travel warnings and flight delays

Dense fog across large areas of the UK has prompted yellow weather warnings, slowed road and rail journeys and led to a handful of flight cancellations, particularly around London on Monday 9 November 2026.

Met Office issues yellow fog warnings across central and southern UK

Publicly available information from the Met Office shows yellow fog warnings in force from the evening of Monday 9 November through mid-morning on Tuesday 10 November 2026, covering swathes of central England, parts of Wales and the South East. Visibility in some locations is forecast to drop below 100 metres, creating hazardous conditions for drivers and transport operators.

The warning area stretches from parts of Wales across the Midlands into eastern England and sections of the London commuter belt. Separate alerts have also highlighted fog patches in Northern Ireland, where regional forecasts indicate similarly reduced visibility during the early hours and morning peak.

According to the Met Office guidance, the yellow alerts reflect a medium likelihood of impacts with generally low severity, but still enough to disrupt day to day travel. Official guidance urges travellers to allow extra time, drive with care and check schedules before setting out.

The fog follows several days of relatively settled high pressure, which forecasters describe as a key factor in allowing moisture near the surface to condense in light winds and weak November sunshine. Met Office outlooks indicate that the foggier spell will gradually give way to clearer, colder and locally frosty conditions as the week progresses.

Flight disruption hits Heathrow and London City

While most UK airports have continued operating, aviation tracking data and passenger-rights services report limited but tangible disruption at London hubs on Monday morning. Information compiled by AirHelp indicates that thick fog contributed to 10 flight cancellations at Heathrow and London City on 9 November, alongside a series of delays to early arrivals and departures.

Airport operations teams rely on regulated aviation meteorological reports to decide when low visibility procedures are required, a process set out in Civil Aviation Authority guidance. When runway visibility drops below set thresholds, aircraft spacing is increased and movements are slowed, which can quickly feed through into knock-on delays during busy morning and evening peaks.

Public communications from passenger-rights organisations emphasise that fog is classed as an extraordinary circumstance for airlines, meaning carriers are not typically required to pay compensation for cancellations directly caused by the weather. However, travellers remain entitled to rebooking or a refund under UK 261 rules when flights are cancelled or heavily disrupted.

At other major airports, including Gatwick, Manchester and Birmingham, published flight boards on Monday morning showed mostly normal operations with pockets of delay on services arriving from fog-affected regions. Ground handling plans released in previous seasons highlight how airports coordinate closely with Met Office warnings to scale up low visibility operations when necessary.

Road and rail networks face slower journeys and patchy disruption

For road users, the combination of thick fog, darker commuting hours and damp road surfaces has increased journey times on several of the UK’s busiest corridors. Broadcaster traffic updates on Monday morning pointed to slow-moving traffic on the M11 near Littlebury in Essex and sections of the M25, M4 and A1, where camera images showed dense fog lingering after sunrise.

Guidance incorporated into the Met Office warning framework notes that fog can reduce stopping distances and make it harder for drivers to judge speed and distance, particularly at motorway speeds. Motorists are advised to use dipped headlights and fog lights where visibility falls below 100 metres, avoid tailgating and be prepared for sudden changes in conditions between higher ground, valleys and river crossings.

Rail services have remained broadly resilient, with only isolated delays attributed to low visibility. Journey planners for operators serving the Midlands and South East flagged slower running in some fog-prone sections, where trains are driven more cautiously or signalling sightlines are affected.

Bus and coach operators have signalled that most routes are operating normally but with extra journey time built into schedules on fog-affected corridors. Travellers using intercity coach services into London and Birmingham are being encouraged, via operator advisories and social media feeds, to allow additional time for transfers to onward rail or air connections.

What travellers should do if their plans are affected

The combination of Met Office yellow warnings and modest levels of disruption means travellers are mostly dealing with inconvenience rather than widespread cancellations. Even so, consumer groups advise that anyone with time-sensitive journeys on Monday evening or Tuesday morning should take a few practical steps.

Air passengers are encouraged to monitor their airline’s app or website on the day of travel, as schedules can change at short notice when visibility deteriorates. In the event of cancellation, publicly available guidance on UK 261 explains that travellers can choose between a refund or rebooking at the earliest opportunity, even when the cause is fog. Airlines also retain a duty of care, which can include meals and accommodation during long waits, though compensation payments are unlikely when severe weather is the primary cause.

Those driving to or from airports are urged to factor the fog into their plans, as slower motorway speeds and reduced visibility on approach roads can extend total journey times. Parking operators and airport websites typically publish real time updates on access roads, which can help travellers decide whether to bring forward their departure.

Rail travellers can check real time information through journey-planning apps and operator websites. When delays occur, existing national rail conditions of travel set out thresholds for claiming partial refunds or delay-repay vouchers, regardless of whether the cause is weather related.

Outlook for the rest of the week

Met Office forecasts for the days following the current fog episode point to a transition toward cooler, clearer and increasingly frosty conditions as pressure patterns shift. While some patches of fog may continue to form overnight, especially in river valleys and low-lying rural areas, the broader signal is for drier weather and more sunshine away from western coasts.

For aviation and surface transport, the evolving pattern means a reduced risk of widespread visibility-related disruption but a growing focus on frost and potential icy patches. Airports and local authorities routinely adjust their winter operations from fog procedures to de-icing and gritting programmes as temperatures drop.

Travel industry briefings suggest that, for now, the heavy fog episode of 8 and 9 November remains a short-lived challenge rather than a prolonged shutdown across the UK network. However, the events of this week are serving as a reminder, especially for winter city-break and business travellers, that November and December journeys in the UK can still be vulnerable to rapid changes in visibility.

With more settled high pressure patterns possible later in the month, forecasters note that further bouts of dense fog cannot be ruled out. Travellers planning trips over the coming weeks are being encouraged to build flexibility into itineraries, particularly where early morning flights or long motorway drives are involved.