The number of flights controlled by NATS during 2009 declined 9.6 per cent compared to the total for 2008.  Controllers managed 2,200,326 flights in UK airspace last year against 2,433,946 in 2008.

NATS Chief Operating Officer Ian Mills said: “This year has seen a significant decline in air travel due, in large part, to the global economic downturn. As the economy recovers, we anticipate a corresponding increase in air traffic.”

“However, we are proud to say that despite reduced traffic playing a part, NATS has made a significant improvement in managing its delays. In 2009, NATS brought down the average delay per flight attributable to air traffic control to 4.6 seconds, with 99.5 per cent of flights receiving no NATS-attributable delay at all.  This compares with 21.9 seconds delay per flight in 2008 and 98 per cent of flights having no delay.”

“This improvement has resulted in NATS achieving our best delay performance to date and has been a significant contributor to the overall punctuality of airlines operating in our airspace.”

All centres and markets recorded a reduction in traffic in 2009. Air traffic movements at airports where NATS provides a service decreased overall by 9.3 per cent last year compared to 2008. 

The number of UK flights for the last month of 2009 was down 6.5 per cent compared to December 2008, although Farnborough (1.7 per cent) and Gatwick (0.2 per cent) airports have posted growth for the month.