Passengers at some of the country’s busiest airports, including Gatwick and Manchester, are facing widespread disruption due to fog.

The UK’s main air traffic control provider, Nats, said the flow of flights was being reduced for safety reasons.

“Due to widespread fog, temporary air traffic restrictions are in place at several airports across the UK today,” Nats said.

Dozens of flights from Heathrow were also delayed or cancelled but a spokeswoman for the airport, contacted by the BBC, did not clarify whether the disruption was due to the weather.

Passengers should check the status of their flight with their airline and airport, Nats added.

“Restrictions of this sort are only ever applied to maintain safety,” Nats said, adding staff were working “closely with the airports and airlines to minimise disruption”.

Data from flight tracking website Flightradar24 showed dozens of outbound flights were cancelled from Manchester, Gatwick and Heathrow airports, while hundreds more were delayed.

Inbound flights were also cancelled or delayed, Flightradar24 data showed.

The mist and fog is expected to clear slowly on Saturday, according to the latest Met Office forecast.

Fog has caused problems at airports in Jersey and Guernsey too.

Forecasters are also warning of “significant disruption” in the build-up to Hogmanay, with a yellow weather warning for heavy rain issued for nearly all of Scotland from 30 December.

“Like most airports across the country, we have experienced some delays as a result of fog,” a Manchester Airport spokesperson said.

Passengers have been told to arrive at the airport “as normal”, as most delays “have been short and have not caused disruption to our schedule,” they added.

A London Gatwick spokesperson said temporary air traffic restrictions had been put in place due to fog causing poor visibility.

“Some flights may be delayed throughout the day,” they added.

“London Gatwick apologises for any inconvenience. Passengers should contact their airline for further information.”

Meanwhile, National Highways, which runs the UK’s motorways and busiest A-roads, said the misty weather was not having a significant impact on its network.

It reminded motorists to use dipped headlights, wipers and demisters while driving in foggy conditions.

BBC Weather said Visibility across the UK should improve over the next few days.

The persistent low cloud, mist and fog has been trapped in place by a slow-moving area of high pressure.

Over the weekend that high will drift away, allowing the breeze to strengthen. This will turn over the stagnant air and begin to lift the fog.

Saturday will start with widespread low cloud, mist and fog – especially in England and Wales. Some of that is expected to gradually clear during the day, particularly by the afternoon, and a few spells of sunshine are possible.

By Sunday conditions look significantly clearer with sunny spells across much of England, Wales and Northern Ireland. At the same time heavy rain will set in across the north and west of Scotland but stronger winds mean that fog will not be a significant concern.