Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on passengers of the flight disruption at London and other UK airports on 8 and 9 September.

The Government apologises to passengers across the United Kingdom who faced significant disruption as a result of the issues that impacted NATS’ operation on 8 September, resulting in delays and cancellations for a large number of passengers, as well as the disruption that it has caused for industry. Let us be clear that disruption of this kind is absolutely unacceptable.

The Civil Aviation Authority has reminded airlines of their responsibilities to passengers including providing refunds or re-routing for cancelled flights. The Department for Transport officials worked closely with NATS, airports and airlines throughout the incident and recovery period to monitor impacts on passengers and provide support where necessary.

The Secretary of State asked NATS to provide a report by Wednesday 16 September setting out the cause of the incident and the actions taken in response. She has also asked the CAA to conduct an independent review into this matter immediately to ensure appropriate steps are taken to minimise the risk of similar disruption occurring for passengers in the future.