Aviation minister Keir Mather has faced ridicule after it emerged he stated Britain's air traffic control system was "well prepared" and had "increased resilience" just one day before a significant technical failure caused widespread disruption. The comments were made in response to a written Parliamentary question on Monday, unearthed by the Mail. The system experienced a four-hour technical failure at National Air Traffic Services (NATS) on Tuesday, leading to the cancellation of over 2,000 flights and impacting more than 330,000 passengers. Major airports including Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, and Stansted were affected by cancellations and delays.
Mather, appointed aviation minister last September at age 27, stated that 34 recommendations from a Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) review following a 2023 meltdown had been implemented. He also highlighted new laws enacted in December that aimed to streamline the recruitment of air traffic controllers from overseas and the military, asserting these measures would "increase resilience in the UK’s Air Traffic Controllers system and reduce the risk of delays."
Opposition figures criticized the government's claims. Tory shadow transport secretary Richard Holden stated, "Labour are victims of their own supreme hubris." He added, "Hundreds of thousands of passengers have been left on aircraft for hours, or faced cancelled and delayed flights because the supposed resilience Labour ministers talked up failed when it was needed most." Holden argued that if ministers boast about systems when they work, they should take responsibility when they fail.
NATS chief executive Martin Rolfe, who earned £1.4 million in pay and bonuses last year, has also drawn criticism for his leadership during multiple air traffic control incidents. This latest failure follows a 2023 meltdown that affected over 250,000 passengers and a July incident last year that caused around 250 flight cancellations due to a radar-related issue. Both Ryanair and Wizz Air bosses have called for Rolfe's resignation.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander reportedly met with Rolfe following the incident. While she dismissed calls for his immediate dismissal, she has requested a report on the fiasco, due by Wednesday. A NATS spokesperson confirmed the disruption was caused by a failure in its flight-processing system. The CAA has indicated that under passenger rights rules, the incident is likely to be considered an "extraordinary circumstance," meaning passengers may not be entitled to compensation from airlines, although airlines are expected to provide care.