Regulator publishes progress report on
Independent Review into August 2023 NATS Flight Planning System
Failure
An interim report, prepared
by an Independent Review Panel into the air traffic control failure
on 28 August 2023, has been published by the UK Civil Aviation
Authority.
The review into the
incident was set up by the regulator following the incident, with
an Independent Panel chaired by Jeff Halliwell beginning its
inquiry in October 2023.
The regulator estimates
that over 700,000 passengers were impacted, including 300,000
people by cancellations, 95,000 by long delays of over three hours,
and a further 300,000 by shorter delays.
NATS has indicated that it
has acted to address a number of findings arising from its own
internal investigation.
In its interim report, the
Independent Panel notes that it has made good progress,
particularly in respect of understanding the cause of the failure,
but that other factors require further evidence and investigation,
including communications around the incident, the incentive regime
for investment and the response by the aviation system.
These, along with the
recommendations will be addressed in the Independent Panel's final
report, which is expected to be published later this
year.
Jeff Halliwell, Chair
of the Independent Review Panel, said:
"This interim report sets
out the Panel's work so far in understanding the root causes of the
incident; the effectiveness of communications between NATS, other
parts of the aviation sector, and the consumers; and the
underpinning regulatory regime.
"In developing the interim
report, the Panel has engaged with a wide range of stakeholders to
ensure the final report reflects a diverse range of
perspectives.
"In order to produce
effective recommendations, the Panel has further lines of enquiry
it is exploring in order to build a better understanding of how the
aviation system can improve."
Rob Bishton, Chief
Executive of the UK Civil Aviation Authority,
added:
"The UK Air Traffic Control
system is vital to the safe and efficient management of millions of
air journeys each year.
"This interim report helps
with the understanding of what went wrong, what worked well in
response to this, and importantly what action can be taken to
improve the UK's aviation system for the future.
"I'd like to thank the
Panel for its continued work on this subject and we look forward to
publishing the final report later this year. "
Notes to
editor
The full NATS Flight
Planning System Failure Interim Report is shown below:
http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/7709G_1-2024-3-13.pdf
For further information
contact:
Andrew McConnell, Head of
Media and External Affairs, Communications
Department - 0333
103 6000
Robert Crawford, Media Lead, Communications
Department - 0333
103 6000
Rob Toal, Head of
Secretariat for Independent Review Panel -
0333 103 6000