The Midlands air transport hub has selected NATS to provide air traffic services, which have been run in-house for the last 10 years.
The air navigation services provider (ANSP) will take over the air traffic and associated engineering services in 2025, once all the airport’s controllers, assistants and air traffic engineers have transferred over.
The appointment of NATS follows a competitive tender process and is in line with the airport’s modernisation plans. It is investing £300 million over the next decade in modernising its terminal and airfield to ensure it is ready to accommodate the projected passenger demand of 18 million by 2033.
“Our industry is evolving at an unprecedented pace, driven by rising air traffic, advancing digitisation and a heightened focus on sustainability,” said Andrew Holl, Birmingham Airport Airfield Operations Director. He also noted that in the current dynamic landscape, the partnership with NATS marks a key step forward for the airport. “We’re very excited to shape the future of aviation at Birmingham together with NATS,” he continued.
Part of NAT’s remit will be to work with the airport to develop a technology and innovation roadmap to ensure the air traffic service can deliver the increase in capacity safely and efficiently, while enabling the airport’s growth into the next decade.
Guy Adams, NATS Services Managing Director, added the collaboration is “testament to the hard work by teams right across the business to understand what the airport needs and to demonstrate the value NATS can add. Our next priority is to ensure a smooth transition, to welcome the Birmingham air traffic team into NATS, and to work together to support the airport’s ambitions.
Image source: NATS.
