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| Champions League: Fans could help break UK flight record | Champions League: Fans could help break UK flight record |
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| There could be a record-breaking number of flights using British skies on one day as English football fans fly to Madrid for the Champions League final. | There could be a record-breaking number of flights using British skies on one day as English football fans fly to Madrid for the Champions League final. |
| Around 9,000 flights are predicted on Friday, which would exceed the previous record of 8,854 set on 25 May 2018. | Around 9,000 flights are predicted on Friday, which would exceed the previous record of 8,854 set on 25 May 2018. |
| Air traffic controller Nats said there would be a surge in chartered flights and private jets ahead of Saturday's clash between Tottenham and Liverpool. | Air traffic controller Nats said there would be a surge in chartered flights and private jets ahead of Saturday's clash between Tottenham and Liverpool. |
| Fans have been posting on social media as they begin their journeys to Madrid. | Fans have been posting on social media as they begin their journeys to Madrid. |
| With flights to the Spanish capital at a premium, many have had to go via other countries to reach their final destination. | With flights to the Spanish capital at a premium, many have had to go via other countries to reach their final destination. |
| Nats has predicted an extra 800 flights will take off over the weekend, but that could increase as some private jets may not have registered their flight plans yet. | Nats has predicted an extra 800 flights will take off over the weekend, but that could increase as some private jets may not have registered their flight plans yet. |
| That number is on top of the 8,000 flights it would handle on a typical day at this time of year. | That number is on top of the 8,000 flights it would handle on a typical day at this time of year. |
| It says more than half of the extra charter flights will be to and from Liverpool Airport. | It says more than half of the extra charter flights will be to and from Liverpool Airport. |
| Among the thousands of fans heading to Madrid is Conservative MP - and Tottenham supporter - Tracey Crouch, who tweeted a picture of her toenails painted with blue sparkles for the occasion. | |
| A Nats spokeswoman said it would be a huge undertaking to look after the extra flights at what is already the busiest time of year. | |
| She said: "There is no doubt this is going to be a challenging weekend, with limited capacity on the ground at some airports and in the air making delays possible." | |
| Last Friday 24 May had been forecast to be the busiest to date - with a bank holiday, school half-term, the Monaco Grand Prix, and Cannes Film Festival contributing to a spike - but it fell just shy of the record with 8,742 flights taking place. | Last Friday 24 May had been forecast to be the busiest to date - with a bank holiday, school half-term, the Monaco Grand Prix, and Cannes Film Festival contributing to a spike - but it fell just shy of the record with 8,742 flights taking place. |
| Nats said there was "a good chance" the record would be broken this time, adding that it would be able to confirm the figure by Monday. | Nats said there was "a good chance" the record would be broken this time, adding that it would be able to confirm the figure by Monday. |