Article Abstract:
UK government plans to sell-off part of National Air Traffic Services (Nats) could be blocked by legal action being considered by the European Commission (EC), it emerged on 7 March 2000. Air traffic control (ATC) chiefs have informed the EC that the establishment of a so-called golden share in the new business by the state, together with a limit on a single shareholding of 15%, represented a violation of an erstwhile EC ruling. UK Deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, is proposing to sell 51% of Nats, but the ATC union, IPMS, claims that the such a move may undermine the status of the EC should he be allowed to push ahead his plan.
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Article Abstract:
The UK National Air Traffic Service (Nats) revealed on 23 July 2000 that more flights than ever before will be handled by air traffic controllers during the summer. However, the increase comes after a report from the Confidential Human Factors Incident Reporting Programme (Chirp) revealed that many air traffic controllers had expressed their fears about the workload and the inability of the present system to cope with an increase in air traffic. Many controllers, engineers and pilots claimed that air traffic has exceeded the control system capacity.
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Article Abstract:
The UK government is to receive a call 16 October 2000 from National Air Traffic Services (Nats) staff urging it not to sell a 51% stake to the private sector. The Nats staff recommends that the stake be controlled by a non-profitable trust such as the system employed in Canada where air traffic is controlled by NavCanada. Nats claims that a not-for-profit system would improve safety as well as generate more income.
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