Breaking Down the Collins Aerospace Cyber-Attack: A Wake-Up Call for Aviation Security

Breached Company

24 Sep 2025 — 9 min read

Editor's Note: This comprehensive analysis builds upon our ongoing coverage of the Collins Aerospace ransomware crisis. For earlier reporting, see our initial attack coverage, after-weekend update, and Day 3 Dublin Airport crisis report.

Executive Summary

In September 2025, a sophisticated ransomware attack on Collins Aerospace, a critical aviation technology provider, brought major European airports to their knees. The incident, which led to the arrest of a 40-year-old suspect in the UK, exposed the fragility of interconnected aviation systems and highlighted the escalating cyber threat landscape facing the industry. With manual check-ins replacing automated systems and thousands of passengers stranded, this attack serves as a stark reminder of aviation's digital vulnerabilities in an era where cyber-attacks on the sector have surged by 600% year-over-year.

The Attack Unfolds

Late on Friday evening, September 19, 2025, what began as a technical anomaly quickly escalated into one of the most significant cyber incidents to hit European aviation. Collins Aerospace's MUSE (Multi-User System Environment) software—a critical platform that allows airlines to share check-in desks and boarding gates—fell victim to what authorities would later confirm as a ransomware attack.

The timing could hardly have been worse. As weekend travelers packed airports across Europe, the automated systems that typically process thousands of passengers per hour ground to a halt. Heathrow, Europe's busiest airport, was among the first to feel the impact, followed swiftly by Brussels, Berlin Brandenburg, and Dublin airports.

The HardBit Connection

Security researchers quickly identified the culprit: HardBit ransomware, described by cybersecurity expert Kevin Beaumont as "incredibly basic" yet devastatingly effective. This particular strain, which first emerged in October 2022, gained notoriety for its operators' willingness to negotiate ransom amounts based on victims' cyber insurance policies—a cynical but calculated approach to maximizing profits.

What made this attack particularly challenging was HardBit's persistence. As we reported in our after-weekend update, Collins Aerospace faced significant difficulties in removing the malware, with systems becoming reinfected even after cleanup attempts. Beaumont noted that "they've had to restart recovery again as the devices keep getting reinfected," forcing the company to restart recovery efforts multiple times and prolonging the disruption.

The attack vector may have originated through Collins Aerospace's European data center in Cork, Ireland. Technical analysis suggests the breach began at 22:45 GMT on September 19 with phishing vectors disguised as RTX firmware updates, exploitation of unpatched MUSE API gateway vulnerabilities (CVSS 9.8), and lateral movement through federated authentication layers. By 02:00 GMT Saturday, over 500,000 passenger itineraries had been encrypted.

Impact Across European Aviation

Immediate Operational Chaos

The attack's impact was immediate and severe:

Heathrow Airport: Staff deployed emergency protocols, shifting to manual check-in processes. Internal memos revealed that over 1,000 computers may have been corrupted, with most recovery work impossible to perform remotely.
Brussels Airport: Initially forced to cancel 50% of Monday's scheduled departing flights, the airport struggled with what it described as a "large impact" on flight schedules, with average delays exceeding one hour. By Monday, 60 flights were cancelled out of 550 scheduled.
Berlin Brandenburg: Passengers faced extended waiting times as staff scrambled to process check-ins manually, with the airport warning of ongoing disruptions through the week. Systems remained offline as of Monday afternoon with hour-plus delays continuing.
Dublin Airport: Terminal 2 experienced the most severe and prolonged impact. As detailed in our Day 3 crisis report, Dublin Airport spokesman Graeme McQueen revealed they were literally rebuilding servers "from scratch" with no clear timeline for resolution. Terminal 2 remained in crisis mode through Monday evening, with Aer Lingus passengers facing 30-40 minute queues minimum. US IT experts were flown in to assist recovery efforts, highlighting the severity of the situation.

By the Numbers

According to aviation analytics provider Cirium, within the first 48 hours:

38 departures and 33 arrivals were canceled across the major affected airports
Over 200 flights experienced significant delays at Heathrow alone
Thousands of passengers faced hours-long queues for manual processing

Financial Fallout

As we reported in our Day 3 coverage, markets reacted swiftly to the crisis:

Monday Morning Trading:

International Airlines Group (IAG): Down ~1%
EasyJet: Down ~1%
Wizz Air: Down ~1%
Ryanair: Down 1.69% (extending month-long slide)

Cost Projections:

Brussels Airport alone: €22 million in rerouted cargo
Passenger compensation under EU261: Estimated €4.5 million
Total industry impact: Potentially exceeding €150 million

The Arrest and Investigation

On Tuesday evening, September 24, UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) made a breakthrough, arresting a man in his forties in West Sussex on suspicion of Computer Misuse Act violations. Paul Foster, head of the NCA's National Cyber Crime Unit, characterized the arrest as "a positive step" while cautioning that the investigation remained in its early stages.

The speed of the arrest—less than five days after the initial attack—suggests either sophisticated digital forensics capabilities or potentially careless operational security by the attackers. The suspect was released on conditional bail as investigations continued.

A Pattern of Vulnerability

This incident didn't occur in isolation. Collins Aerospace had previously been targeted by the notorious BianLian ransomware group in 2023, which claimed to have stolen employee personal information, operational data, and corporate files. While BianLian ceased operations in March 2025, security experts speculated that backdoors from the earlier breach might have facilitated the recent attack.

The CrowdStrike Warning Ignored

Most damning, as we detailed extensively in our after-weekend update, is that this crisis comes just two months after the CrowdStrike BSOD incident of July 19, 2024, which should have served as a clear warning. That incident, caused by a faulty sensor update (Channel File 291) containing a logic error, brought global aviation to its knees:

Airlines globally were grounded
Delta passengers were stranded for 3-4 days at Atlanta airport
Manual check-in procedures were implemented (exactly as we're seeing now)
The fix required physically accessing each affected machine

The bitter irony? While CrowdStrike was an accidental failure and Collins Aerospace suffered a deliberate attack, both exposed the same fundamental weaknesses:

Single points of failure in critical aviation infrastructure
Cascade effects from centralized systems
Inadequate offline fallback capabilities
Manual processes that can't scale to modern passenger volumes

As our reporting noted: "The industry's failure to implement lessons learned has transformed what should have been a manageable incident into a multi-day, multi-billion-euro disaster affecting millions of passengers."

The attack also fits into a broader pattern of aviation sector targeting. According to a June 2025 report by French aerospace company Thales, cyber-attacks on the aviation industry increased by an unprecedented 600% between 2024 and 2025. The report documented 27 ransomware attacks involving 22 different groups targeting various components of the aviation supply chain.

Single Point of Failure: The Supply Chain Risk

The Collins Aerospace incident starkly illustrates the aviation industry's Achilles' heel: its reliance on centralized service providers. As Dr. Hisham Al Assam from the University of Buckingham noted, "Such models turn efficiency into fragility, where a single compromise can disrupt several airlines at once."

Collins Aerospace, a subsidiary of defense giant RTX (formerly Raytheon Technologies), provides mission-critical systems to airlines and airports globally. Their MUSE software serves as the digital backbone for check-in and boarding operations across multiple carriers and terminals. When it failed, the ripple effects were immediate and widespread.

This centralization, while offering economies of scale and standardization benefits, creates what cybersecurity experts call a "single point of failure." One successful attack can cascade across multiple airports and airlines, affecting thousands of flights and millions of passengers.

Supply Chain Attack Pattern Recognition

As we reported in our initial coverage, this incident follows several high-profile supply chain compromises that exposed critical vulnerabilities:

CDK Global (June 2024): BlackSuit ransomware group compromised the automotive industry's primary dealer management system, affecting 15,000 car dealerships. The attack forced dealerships to resort to pen-and-paper processes, ultimately costing over $1 billion collectively. CDK paid a $25 million ransom, but the two-week outage demonstrated how a single vendor compromise could paralyze an entire economic sector.
PowerSchool (December 2024): Attackers compromised the education technology giant's customer support portal, stealing personal data from 62 million students. Despite PowerSchool paying a $2.85 million ransom, criminals later launched secondary extortion campaigns against individual school districts.

These incidents share troubling similarities with the Collins attack—targeting administrative access to vendor systems, exploiting "always-on" network connections, and leveraging deep system integrations to maximize impact.

The Evolving Threat Landscape

Financial Motivations

The aviation sector has become increasingly attractive to cybercriminals for several reasons:

High-value targets: Airlines and airports process millions of financial transactions daily
Operational criticality: The time-sensitive nature of air travel makes organizations more likely to pay ransoms quickly
Data richness: Personal, biometric, and financial data of travelers represents valuable commodities on dark web markets

Geopolitical Dimensions

Beyond financially motivated crime, the Thales report highlights growing concerns about state-sponsored cyber operations targeting aviation infrastructure. These attacks serve multiple purposes:

Economic disruption of rival nations
Intelligence gathering on passenger movements
Testing cyber warfare capabilities against critical infrastructure

Technical Sophistication

While the HardBit ransomware used in this attack was described as "basic," the broader trend shows increasing sophistication in aviation-targeted malware. Attackers are developing specialized tools that exploit sector-specific vulnerabilities in reservation systems, air traffic control networks, and operational technology.

Industry Response and Recovery

The Geographic Divide: Winners and Losers

As detailed in our Day 3 coverage, a clear pattern emerged between airports that weathered the crisis and those that struggled:

The Resilient (Minimal Impact):

Paris (Roissy, Orly, Le Bourget): Reported NO disruptions throughout crisis
Frankfurt: Relatively spared despite being major hub, quick switch to backup systems
Amsterdam Schiphol: Minor impacts only with rapid recovery implementation

The Crisis Zones:

Dublin: Terminal 2 in complete rebuild mode, no timeline for restoration
Brussels: 60 flights cancelled Monday (out of 550 scheduled)
Berlin Brandenburg: Systems still offline as of Monday afternoon

This geographic divide proves that preparation matters—airports with adequate backup systems and vendor diversification demonstrated remarkable resilience.

Immediate Mitigation

Airlines and airports demonstrated varying levels of preparedness. British Airways, notably, continued operations using backup systems, while other carriers struggled with manual processes. This disparity highlighted the importance of robust business continuity planning and regular disaster recovery testing.

Staff at affected airports worked tirelessly to minimize passenger impact:

Additional personnel were deployed to terminals
Manual check-in procedures were implemented
Passengers were advised to arrive early and check flight status before traveling

Long-term Implications

The incident has sparked urgent discussions about aviation cybersecurity resilience:

Diversification of suppliers: Reducing dependency on single vendors for critical systems
Enhanced incident response: Improving coordination between airports, airlines, and cybersecurity agencies
Investment in cybersecurity: The global aviation cybersecurity market is projected to reach $5.32 billion in 2025, growing at 8.7% annually through 2029
Regulatory evolution: Calls for stricter cybersecurity standards and mandatory incident reporting

Lessons Learned

For the Aviation Industry

Supply chain security assessment: Regular audits of third-party vendors and their security postures
Redundancy and backup systems: Investment in parallel systems that can operate independently during cyber incidents
Staff training: Regular drills on manual procedures and crisis management
Information sharing: Enhanced collaboration through industry-specific threat intelligence platforms

For Cybersecurity Professionals

Persistence mechanisms: The reinfection issues highlight the need for comprehensive malware removal procedures
Incident response planning: The importance of remote recovery capabilities for geographically distributed systems
Cross-border coordination: International cyber incidents require seamless cooperation between national agencies

For Policymakers

Critical infrastructure protection: Aviation's designation as critical infrastructure demands enhanced protective measures
International cooperation: Cyber attacks don't respect borders, requiring coordinated international responses
Regulatory frameworks: Balancing operational efficiency with security requirements

Looking Ahead

The Unasked Question: Where's the Ransom Demand?

As we noted in our Day 3 report, unusually for a confirmed ransomware attack, no group has claimed responsibility and no ransom demand has been made public. This suggests either:

Negotiations happening privately
Attack was disruption-focused rather than financial
State-sponsored actors testing capabilities
Criminals waiting for maximum pressure before demands

Future Implications

As the aviation industry continues its digital transformation, the Collins Aerospace incident serves as a crucial inflection point. The convergence of operational technology and information technology in modern airports creates both opportunities and vulnerabilities.

The arrest of the suspect offers some hope for accountability, but the broader challenge remains: how to secure an increasingly interconnected aviation ecosystem against sophisticated and persistent cyber threats.

With the EU's cybersecurity agency ENISA confirming the ransomware nature of the attack and ongoing investigations by multiple national agencies, the incident will likely drive significant changes in aviation cybersecurity practices. The industry must balance the efficiency gains of digital integration with the imperative of operational resilience.

Conclusion

The September 2025 cyber-attack on Collins Aerospace represents more than just a temporary disruption to European air travel—it's a clarion call for fundamental changes in how the aviation industry approaches cybersecurity. As cyber threats continue to evolve and proliferate, with a 600% increase in attacks year-over-year, the sector can no longer treat cybersecurity as an afterthought or cost center.

As Graeme McQueen's admission about rebuilding Dublin's servers "from scratch" echoes across the industry, and as we've documented throughout our comprehensive multi-day coverage, one thing becomes clear: the question isn't whether another attack will come, but whether aviation will finally be ready when it does.

The incident demonstrates that in our interconnected digital age, the security of one is the security of all. A single compromised vendor can bring multiple international airports to a standstill, affecting global commerce and travel. The rapid arrest of a suspect provides some reassurance about law enforcement capabilities, but prevention remains far preferable to prosecution.

Most critically, this attack came just two months after the CrowdStrike incident provided a clear warning—a warning that was evidently ignored. The industry's failure to implement lessons learned has transformed what should have been a manageable incident into a multi-day, multi-billion-euro disaster affecting millions of passengers.

As the aviation industry recovers from this latest incident and prepares for future challenges, the lessons learned must translate into concrete actions: stronger security measures, better incident response capabilities, and a cultural shift that places cybersecurity at the heart of operational planning. The alternative—continued vulnerability to increasingly sophisticated attacks—is a luxury the industry and traveling public can no longer afford.

The skies may be friendly, but cyberspace increasingly is not. The aviation industry must adapt accordingly, building resilience into every layer of its digital infrastructure. Only through such comprehensive efforts can it hope to maintain the safety, efficiency, and reliability that modern air travel demands.

This article is based on publicly available information, official statements from affected organizations and law enforcement agencies, and our ongoing reporting of this crisis. For continued updates, follow our coverage at Breached Company. The investigation into the Collins Aerospace cyber-attack remains ongoing.

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