National Air Traffic Control Services

HC Deb 03 July 2002 vol 388 cc359-60W

Mrs. Gillan

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimates he has made of the losses to British airlines and businesses caused by failures of the computer system at the new National Air Traffic Control Services. [64560]

Mr. Jamieson

No such estimate has been made of the losses caused to airlines and other businesses.

There have been three failures of computer systems at NATS' Air Traffic Control Centres this year. Two have occurred to the Flight Data Processing System at West Drayton and one was attributable to a faulty work station at the new centre at Swanwick.

A number of immediate actions have been taken, including a successful upgrade to the software in the system at West Drayton. NATS are confident that the problems that have caused these three system failures have been addressed.