Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assurances she has sought from NATS that qualified engineers are available on site at its operational centres at all times to respond to critical system failures.

I recognise the significant disruption this outage caused for passengers, airlines, and airports. The Government is taking steps to ensure the right lessons are learnt. This includes asking the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to conduct an independent review into the incidents.

As part of the independent review into NATS’ performance following the incidents that occurred on 8 and 21 September this year, the CAA will complete a broader assessment of NATS' resilience, which will include the adequacy of the resilience requirements, governance and assurance arrangements applied to NATS existing critical operational systems and supporting infrastructure. The review will also complete a broader assessment of NATS’ capital investment and modernisation plans, as well as the effectiveness of the CAA's own regulatory oversight. An initial findings report is due to be completed by end of January 2027, with a final report submitted by the end of March 2027. As a significant shareholder of NATS, the Government expects appropriate accountability and will consider the findings of the ongoing investigation carefully.