New air traffic control system to cause delays at Heathrow and Gatwick
Passengers flying to and from London airports are being warned to expect some delays for at least the next 10 days and possibly up to three weeks as Britain upgrades its outdated air traffic control system.
Starting today, National Air Traffic Services (NATS) is phasing out the paper strips used for the past 40 years to record flight information, such as the direction, speed and altitude of every aircraft, to a more efficient digital system known as EXCDS
It has completed two out of five planned transitions to EXCDS, affecting arrivals, departures and holding areas north of London, including aircraft heading to and from Heathrow, Luton, Stansted and London City airports.
Over the next few weeks NATS will focus on airspace south and southeast of London, including the busy approach routes to Heathrow and Gatwick.
NATS general manager of the London Terminal Control Peter Dawson described this as the most challenging transition in terms of the possible impact on passengers, adding that some delays and disruption were inevitable.
"This is because we will be reducing the amount of air traffic in the transitioning sectors to give controllers more space to build up their confidence using the new tool in the live environment," he said in a blog post.
Speaking to the BBC, Dawson said the average delay at Heathrow, caused by the change over, was likely to be around 20 minutes while at Gatwick it might be limited to around 10 minutes.
In a statement on its website, Gatwick airport warned passengers to expected almost three weeks disruption.
"Some flights may be delayed between April 4 and April 24 due to the UK’s national air traffic control provider, NATS, upgrading its systems for London and the terminal control centre," it says. "This work will impact several airports across south England
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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