Consecutive system failures hit Nats control centres across two weeks in September, severely impacting hundreds of thousands of travelers. During the first incident, the agency managed only 6,000 of its scheduled 8,000 flights, leaving widespread delays and a software flaw that was initially underestimated. Although Rolfe stated the specific faults have been rectified, he admitted complex aviation networks can never be entirely risk-free. The Civil Aviation Authority is currently reviewing the events and will present its formal findings to the government in early 2027.
Key points
Nats chief executive Martin Rolfe rejected resignation calls led by Ryanair boss Michael…: Nats chief executive Martin Rolfe rejected resignation calls led by Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary following the travel chaos.
Rolfe maintained that while the specific unprecedented technical faults have been resolve…: Rolfe maintained that while the specific unprecedented technical faults have been resolved, no complex air system can guarantee absolute reliability.
The Civil Aviation Authority is reviewing the incidents and will submit its official repo…: The Civil Aviation Authority is reviewing the incidents and will submit its official report to the Transport Secretary in early 2027.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
The boss of Nats has said he was “the most disliked person in the UK” after air traffic control systems failed twice in September, disrupting flights for hundreds of thousands of passengers.
He told an aviation industry conference: “My name is Martin Rolfe, I’m the CEO of Nats – or as I like to think of myself, the most disliked person in the UK in September.”
Airlines led by Ryanair called for Rolfe’s resignation after two technical failures in a fortnight at the two control centres run by Nats (National Air Traffic Control Services) stopped flights taking off and landing.
However, Rolfe said he was “quite enjoying” ignoring the repeated calls from Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary to quit.
Airlines have said the outage on 8 September alone cost them tens of millions of pounds. The chaos that day stemmed from an issue in Nats’s flight control systems and is now the subject of a government-commissioned inquiry.
Rolfe told the Airlines 2026 conference in London on Wednesday that Nats had expected to handle about 8,000 flights that day and 6,000 had…
Federal regulators have granted crucial operational permission, validating the company's technology path forward. The green light from the U.S. Department of Energy represents a major regulatory hurdle cleared, driving renewed investor enthusiasm. This critical milestone allows the company to transition toward operating its reactor at full capacity.
Capri Holdings has named Justin Boxford as its new chief executive officer. Boxford joins the company after serving as a longtime executive at Estée Lauder.