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woman: architect. bee keeper. mentor. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life well planned. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. announcer: and now, "bbc news". >> hello, i'm christ, and this is "the context." >> i'm very cognizant that this will disrupt people's travel plans. those waiting to arrive in the u.k. and those waiting to depart. >> 10% of flights for the u.k. have been canceled. that will increase in the next

couple of hours as airline struggle to try to get their heads around the logistical nightmare. >> you hope the airline will come out and offer information but obviously in this case they couldn't because i didn't know. -- they didn't know. ♪ christian: a bank holiday meltdown. air traffic control in the u.k. experiences a serious technical fault which grounded flights all across europe. it could take days for the backlog to be cleared. we will bring you reaction tonight. have a date, donald trump will go to court in march on his alleged attempts to submerge the 2020 election, and on the 60th anniversary of the civil rights march in washington, we will speak to the family of dr. martin luther king jr.. ♪ christian: good evening. the last bank holiday of the

summer is always one of the busiest travel days of the year, and air traffic control says it is now identified and remedied the fault that affected the fight -- flight planning system. but for a large part of the day, they were operating manually on a greatly reduced schedule, which means there is still an enormous backlog of flights grounded across europe with long, long delays. more than 500 flights in and out of the u.k. were canceled today. it could be 24-40 eight hours before some passengers will finally get to their destinations. with us tonight, an expert who worked in air traffic control for almost 40 years. good to see you. for all these people stranded at u.k. airports, what went wrong? there are always technical problems from time to time, but this was a big one. doug: yes, it was a big one.

i do feel really sorry for people who are stuck by holiday monday and those on business travel as well. 10 or 15 years ago it much more common, and it's really vital to earning the volumes of air traffic that go through u.k. and european airspace. when an airplane is coming from, say, malan to london, all the air traffic control centers will receive the flight plan from the airplane, and as it gets airborne, it will be updated on the way. when the airplane comes to the u.k. boundary it is when and where we expected and the height we expect it. so that data is essential to the controllers, and the automated system that feeds set into the

computers and displays the detail onto the radar controller screens failed, so it is no longer feeding and more and more information and entually it has a backup of four hours or so, but eventually it would run out, so they had to revert to what they call a manual system, where they are feeding in the information manually. >> so you are saying it automatically populates, but if it bres down you have to put the details of every flight in by hand? doug: yes, pretty much, basically. bear in mind, this is being done well in advance, it's not something that is happening immediately, as the airplanes are arriving into the sectors. that information is fed in well beforeo that controllers can actually plan the sectors.

we have very good monitoring of the sectors so that when airplanes are arriving from all sorts of different areas, we know the volume of traffic that is coming into the sectors, which is why we are very astute that we can run the sectors safely because we know the volume that is coming in. so when you start to lose the surety of this detail in advance, you need to start slowing things down to make sure that if you are having to manually transfer data between air traffic control centers or between controllers airports, then can be as slick as it normally would be. christian: so what they did was they slowed the flow of traffic off the runways, at a place typically like heathrow, what would that mean, what difference would that mean to the runway and how many flights are leaving? doug: the complexity actually

in the air's place -- airspace, the air traffic controllers go on looking at the airspace immediately after the airplanes depart, and relying very much on having up-to-date data fed into it, whh is why they need to make sure that everything is ready for them. so they probably have reduced the flow, may be as low as 25 percent-30% of their normal capacity. christian: obviously that backlog creates a huge problem, five other flights canceled today. i guess it is not for air traffic control to say how quickly that backlog can be managed, that is for the airlines, correct? doug: it is done jointly, to be honest. when i was managing that system, we were closely working with the airlines and we would take the

priorities and airline may have, british airways, for example, they have long-haul flights that are coming in to heathrow or departing to the usa, and they may ask to have those prioritized over some of the short-haul flights, that they know they can perhaps double up later on and things like that. so it is cooperation between airlines. i know from looking at the messages that, speaking to the flow managers and also the airlines to make sure everyone is up-to-date as possible with the information. christian: it's good to talk to you this evening, thank you very much for that. doug maclean there, an expert at air traffic control. a trial date has been set for the criminal case in which donald trump has been accused of trying to overturn the 2020 election. the trial will start on the fourth of march, the day before

super tuesday, which is the day when the greatest number of u.s. states all their primary elections, and just three weeks for he goes on trial in new york on the 25th of march. his lawyers have asked for the case to be delayed until well beyond the election, in 2026. setting a trial date does not depend and should not depend on the defendant's and professional obligations. mr. trump, like any defendant, will have to make the trial date work regardless of his schedule. in the last few minutes, donald trump and his lawyer's have said that they will appeal the setting of that trial date, so another court case will be put into the schedule. meanwhile, in atlanta, another court was hearing evidence today from mr. trump's former chief of staff mark meadows. he is asking that the racketeering case brought by the district attorney be moved from state to federal court. we learned that mr. trump and

his 18 co-defendants will be arraigned in fulton county on the sixth of september. we have the senior legal correspondent for the messenger, and as i start to set out those days, you can see quite quickly just how the calendar feels and how it complicates donald trump's schedule. >> absolutely, and one of the things you just mention was the fact that the setting of the march 4 trial date, which as you mentioned is the day before super tuesday, and also quite close to the hush money case, and delivering a ruling in kate -- in court today, the judge noted that she had gotten in touch with the judge presiding over that case to note the possible conflict. now, remember, the prosecutor in that hush money case, alvin bragg, had said in an interview that he was willing to potentially make way for the schedule. so i would not be surprised if that changes and is delayed, but

it is a crowded calendar, in may we are going to have the classified documents case come to a head in the southern district of flora, and there will be the setting of a calendar in georgia. so plenty more dates on calendars will be filled up by the former president as he tries to be reelected. christian: the judge in washington does not appear to have any interest in granting special measures to a presidential candidate. do you think an appeals court would be more sympathetic? >> not only has the judge not been sympathetic toward that, the judge in a classified documents case in florida, a trump appointee, said that it would not be helpful for trump's attorneys to emphasize the political considerations. these aren't the typical considerations that are brought forward for a court.

considerations are, do you have enough time to review the evidence? is it in accordance with the speedy trial rights? not how does it align with one's campaign calendar. christian: meanwhile, in georgia, we have this is our spectacle, with mark meadows, the former white house chief of staff appealing for the case to be moved from state to federal court. why does he want that? what is the strategy there? >> on the one hand, there is a potentially friendlier jury then in fulton county georgia. with federal court, it is a broader territory in its jurisdiction. so they can be one of the plays. another one that meadows team has signaled is their intent to argue that he is immune from prosecution. it should be noted that the case would still remain in the das hands.

it would be the case brought by fani willis and would remain that way. if convicted and brought to trial and convicted, it would be subject to the same situation as the state case, where those convicons would not be fully pardoned away. christian: if he was in a state court we would see it because they have television cameras, and we would not see as much in the federal court. the question with mark meadows is whether he was acting in his capacity as white house chief of staff. reaching out to court officials, or whether he was acting as part of the trump campaign. what can we hear from him today about his responsibilities? >> i'm actually here in washington dc, and my colleague is in court in atlanta. what we were expecting to see was something of a mini-trial, and my calling from the messenger is providing dispatches on that.

but we are expecting to hear testimony from folks like brad raffensperger, the secretary of state in georgia, and the person on the infamous phone call where trump urged him to find the number of votes that he needed to overturn the election results in those states. so the judge will hear the evidence and that will go straight to the central question, which is, as you mentioned, was mark meadows acting in his official capacity when he was serving as trump's chief of staff after the election. christian: these district attorneys are under a lot of pressure right now. we have another statement from jim jordan today saying he will investigate fani willis to see whether she was in cahoots with the department of justice. the same thing happen with the manhattan district attorney. is that going anywhere?

this investigation that republicans are leading on the hill? >> i think one of the answers to those questions can be found in the fact that the hush money cases -- case is going ahead. the trial date might be moved, but th is not a function of the house judiciary committee, that is a function of the fact that there was the setting of a trial date just today in d.c. that was in proximity of that. so i think that what happens on the hill, we may find out the findings of the committee, i'm sure they will release whatever they learn, but these cases as we see are moving ahead. christian: adam, good to talk to you this evening. around the world and across the u.k., you are watching bbc news. let's take a quick look at some of the u.k. stories making headlines today. the two people who died when a car was driven into a flooded area of liverpool have been named, the family said in a

statement they were devastated and heartbroken. the couple were due to sit -- celebrate their 54th wedding anniversary next week. london's ultralow admissions zone means owners of the most polluting vehicl will have to pay 12.5 pounds per day while driving into the area. tens of thousands of people have been partying at the notting hill carnival today. revelers paraded through the streets of west london for the annual celebration of culture and history. the annual two day celebration reached its climax. you are live with bbc news. fewer than 5% of fests in england result in someone being charged.

that may be down to a lack of evidence, but not always. there are plenty of reported incidents wheneople have tracked down a stolen bike or mobile phone or maybe they caught the offender on a doorbell camera, and yet when they reported it to police, nothing came of it. home secretary says that is completely unacceptable and she now wants all 43 forces in england to follow-up on evidence when there's a reasonable chance of catching the defender. the question is, do they have the resources? reporter: with the rising popularity of doorbell cameras -- cams, more crime is being reported. couple that with googling stuff that has been stolen from them, the expectation from victims is that surely it must be easier to catch those responsible. but that is not the reality. since 2015, they have had to say how many of the princes they record -- offenses they record

result in arrest, but now it is just under 6%. this morning's phony and had plenty of callers sharing their experiences. >> you turn around, your ring the police, and that's as far as you get. we should be getting more from that system where people know if they commit a crime, there will be a definite punishment. we cannot allow people to get away with things like this and just walk away. >> the home secretary was in manchester today to flag up a basic policing in england and wales. every reasonable line of inquiry must now be followed up. >> if you're someone who depends on their car or their van for work purposes, having that stolen can put you out of business. if you've worked har and you've had your possessions burgled from your home, that could be incredibly violating. we need a better and more robust

response from the police. >> the police federation that represent the majority of officers said they all want to do their best. they say this is actually about resources, and many offices are stretched beyond human limits. but what is the reality of offices being asked to follow-up our reasonable leads on all crimes? something will have to give, and that is a concern. >> if the police are being told eve got to put more resources into certain crimes, that means several be less time and less focus on more serious consequences. >> labor has branded the new guidance as a staggering admission of 13 years of tory failure on policing and crime. with an election on the horizon, expect to hear a lot more about policing policy.

danny savage, bbc news, manchester. christian: we heard from the director at the center for climate justice studies and he is with us this evening. what do you put the drop in crime solve down to, down to 6%? >> there's a whole range of reasons. we did see a significant drop in the number of police which the government has now started to address. but crime has also in many ways become more complicated. e police are being encouraged to focus more on some of these really difficult things to sort out, terrorism, serious organized crime, and violence against women and girls. these take significant resources, and one of the effects probably is a drop in the prosecutions.

christian: how do police prioritize if they have limited resources? does it vary from force to force on what they focus on? >> it can vary from force to force. one of the interesting things about what madam secretary said today is she wants a police to follow every reasonable line of iniry. i suspect that a lot of police officer was -- would say, actually, we already do that. in which case why bring it to court today. or if we are expecting the police to follow every possible line of inquiry on every stolen phone or bicycle, for example, then that is going to have a significant impact on what police may be able to devote to tackling more serious offenses such as sexual violence, child

abuse, and other things that are considered to be a priority. christian: i know the and chester constabulary started to focus on burglaries and the solving rate for burglars has been very good. the sort of refocusing could work, could it not? >> sure, if you're saying to the police we want you to really focus on -- i'm sure the police can have some impact on that. only earlier this year, the government reissued new priorities, national priorities r the police, which included child abuse, tackling male violence toward women, tackling terrorism and cyber crime. these are all very time sensitive and time demanding activities. at some point the police will have to make judgments about

where they devote their resources. so i think there is an issue about what kind of messaging we are getting from the government, maybe that will run up to the general election, and they need to kind of reaffirm that. at the end of the day, they're only so many police officers and some the hours of the day. it is going to make for a challenging policing framework. christian: ukrainian armed forces have reportedly gone to a russian airfield using a cardboard drone that is made in australia. the expendable drones come flatpack from down under and can fly up to 120 kilometers. they are capable of carrying bombs up to five kilos in weight and because they are made of cardboard, they are practically invisible to russian air defenses. the company is reported to deliver theystems to ukraine

in may. thank you very much for being with us. tell me about these drones, how many of them do the ukrainians have, and how effective are they? >> they ordered them in mass, so they are up to 100 or more at this point. it is based on their low cost, and there made out of cardboard that is coated with plastic. it makes them very simple to put together. they can assemble these in the field just using glue guns, a knife, tape and a rubber band and it makes it quick and inexpensive to get these into the field. they can be used for a number of things. they can carry payloads, they can be used for reconnaissance. they have a camera that transmits back to a ground

station so they can be used for surveillance purposes. they can deliver supplies from one troop to another troop, or they can be used for missions and carry an explosive payload aboard. christian: there are concerns about the supply of conventional weapon systems to ukraine. what is remarkable about this war is how ukraine has used and adapted technology to really go far beyond its capabilities. this is another example of that, isn't it? >> it is. this is not really anything new. we have been utilizing cardboard drones for years now, primarily for educational purposes. to teach young children howo build aircraft and deadline these systems. but they have a number of applications you can use for low-cost drone systems in other parts of the world that may not be able to afford the more expensive systs. they are cheap to deliver, and

very inexpensive to assemble. so delivering medical supplies or emergency aid or for surveillance, this really is a future application for these types of drones. christian: you work in research and education. does the advent of these sort of drones in the capabilities they bring to the field, does that big serious questions for military planners in the future? we had example the other day where they blew up in air defense system in crimea, a sophisticated air defense installation. does it big questions about how useful conventional weapon systems can be, and whether they can be undermined by things like this? >> yes, certainly. these are being used in ukraine to deler munitions. they can be used by terrorists or nonstate actors as well. whether it is to deliver an

explosive device or some kind of toxic chemical drugs acss borders, these low-cost systems become really difficult to defend against. particularly in this case because it is not just -- the system is program so it is not emitting a radio frequency when it is lying. christian: we will -- when it is flying. christian: narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: financial services firm, raymond james. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. ♪ ♪

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