Holidaymakers face 'reliable flights' at Gatwick this summer after last year's chaos

People were left stranded at Gatwick last August – and at airports across the world – after a nationwide air traffic control network failure.

There were further problems at Gatwick in September when thousands more airline passengers again faced flight cancellations because of ‘short notice sickness’ by staff in the air traffic control tower which is managed by National Air Traffic Services.

But Gatwick is not expecting problems this year. Airport chief executive Stewart Wingate said that he had been involved in bi-weekly talks with NATS through the winter to ensure operational changes were made.

"Based on the changes NATS have made and new graduates in the air traffic control tower this summer, we are confident that NATS will be in a position to provide reliable schedules in 2024,” he said.

He spoke out today (Thursday) as Gatwick published its 2023 financial results which showed that the airport has seen an increase in passengers, revenue and profit over the past year.

See: London Gatwick annual results: Continued recovery of traffic drives strong financial performance

The results showed that 40.9 million passengers passed through the airport by the year end – up 24.7per cent on 2022. Revenue at £1,015.1 million increased by 30.7 per cent and profits rose by 69.9 per cent to £314.8 million.

Gatwick airline passengers can now choose from 56 airlines flying to 220 destinations. This includes 169 short-haul destinations across a large European network and 51 long-haul routes.

Stewart added: "The airport’s ongoing recovery was boosted by collaborative work with our airlines and partners and I’m proud that we continue to offer passengers a fantastic choice of airline and destination, whether flying short or long-haul.”

Longer term, he said, Gatwick’s Northern Runway plans were ‘at a critical stage.’

An examination of its expansion proposals are likely to continue to the end of August before recommendations on them are made to the Government in the autumn.

The Government is expected to announce its decision in the new year. “I’m confident it will be approved,” said Stewart.