Flights from the UK will not be affected by a security row between the EU and US which threatens to halt flights from Europe, the Government has confirmed.
The Department of Transport said it had moved to secure an order that means planes flying to America would escape potential US landing bans.
A deadline for resolving the dispute - over the supply of personal information on passengers to the American authorities - passed on Saturday. But a spokesman for the DoT said no passengers flying from British airports would be affected.
"We took out an air navigation order so planes could have a legal basis for data transfer while the EU-level talks are ongoing," the spokesman said. "It's a patch, if you like."
Other EU countries might take similar action to avoid any US ban, the spokesman added.
The order means that airlines can continue passing on information without exposing themselves to legal action under data protection laws. However the situation for other European airlines remained unclear.
European Commission spokesman Jonathan Todd said: "There is no agreement. There was a legal vacuum as of midnight last night. We have to discuss what to do next."
The commission had earlier warned transatlantic air travel could be thrown into chaos if they had failed to reach a deal by Saturday's deadline.
The row on sharing passenger data began in May when the European Court of Justice in Brussels ruled against a deal struck after September 11. Under that agreement European airlines agreed to supply the US authorities with detailed information on passengers travelling to the United States. This included name, address and credit card details, all within 15 minutes of departure for the US.
The two parties had until Saturday night to replace the deal and the US warned it may fine airlines and even deny them landing rights if they refuse to send such data. It said the information is vital to combat terrorism and senior Government figures have since called for even greater access to information.
