Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the fitness for purpose of the National Air Traffic Services.

The Government recognises the impact of the significant disruption to passengers and aviation operations caused by the technical issue affecting NATS' flight processing systems on 8 September 2026. The Government is also grateful to employees at NATS who acted quickly to manage traffic safely while the issue was investigated and resolved.

Air traffic control services are a vital part of the UK's national infrastructure, underpinning the safe and efficient movement of millions of passengers and supporting businesses, trade and connectivity across the country and internationally.

Serious air traffic control incidents of this scale are rare, but when they do occur have significant impacts for passengers. It is therefore essential that the causes of this disruption are understood by the Department and NATS so that any lessons are identified and changes implemented swiftly.

The Secretary of State has asked NATS to provide a report by Wednesday 16 September setting out the cause of the incident and the actions taken in response and has also asked the CAA to undertake a separate independent review of the incident, which will report within six months.