MAG and NATS announces ten year deal for Manchester and Stansted airports

MAG and NATS, the UK’s leading air traffic control provider, have signed an agreement confirming a ten-year contract for air traffic control and engineering services at both Manchester and London Stansted airports.

NATS has a long standing relationship with Manchester and Stansted Airports, built up over many years, and will commence the new contract on 1 April 2015.

Andrew Cowan, Chief Operating Officer for MAG, said: “NATS is highly regarded within the aviation industry and has a proven track record when it comes to aircraft and passenger safety, which is our shared priority. We believe that NATS is best placed to deliver a modern and efficient air traffic control service for our two largest airports. Both Manchester and Stansted are growing rapidly and we look forward to continuing our strong working relationship and growing a positive future for our airports.”

Mike Stoller, Director of Operations (Airports) at NATS, said: “Having worked with MAG and both airports for a number of years, we are looking forward to continuing our relationship and supporting MAG to achieve their growth ambitions in the future. We will be working in partnership with MAG to build on the safe and resilient service we provide today with innovative air traffic management solutions for their business going forward. Both airports have ambitious growth goals and we will work closely with MAG to ensure that increased air traffic movements and passenger numbers, can be successfully realised.

MAG has continued to invest in air traffic control infrastructure. In 2013, Manchester Airport opened a new £20 million air traffic control tower, the second largest in the UK, in which NATS installed over 70 systems to support the air traffic control operation. This closely followed MAG’s £25m refurbishment of Manchester’s northern runway by the airport group.

Manchester is currently the third largest airport in the country with over 21 million passengers using the airport annually and London Stansted the fourth largest serving over 18 million passengers a year.