Holidaymakers faced disruption as their flights from Jamaica’s airports were suddenly cancelled, with some services having to be diverted or turned back.

The Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority (JCAA) had to suspend air traffic services at 10am local time on Thursday because of a lack of available controllers at Kingston Air Traffic Control Centre, due to an ongoing industrial dispute.

This forced the country’s airports to stop all flights for most of the day until services were finally able to resume at around 5pm.

The Foreign Office issued a warning to travellers about the disruption on Thursday: “Jamaican airspace is closed, preventing flights from arriving at or departing from all airports, including Sangster International airport in Montego Bay, Norman Manley International airport in Kingston and Ian Fleming International airport in Ocho Rios.

“This is due to a shortage of air traffic controllers related to an industrial dispute. Travellers are advised to contact their travel provider for the latest information.”