Calls are mounting for the chief executive of National Air Traffic Services (Nats) to step down as the Transport Secretary confirmed plans to meet the organisation's chairman in the "coming weeks".
Martin Rolfe has faced intense pressure following Monday's travel disruption, which saw more than 170 flights cancelled, marking the second air traffic problem within two weeks.
The provider attributed this recent disruption to a "connectivity issue" occurring at its Prestwick facility in Scotland.
Nats confirmed the fault was unrelated to an earlier air traffic control (ATC) software problem on 8 September, which forced more than 2,000 flight cancellations and disrupted hundreds of thousands of passengers.
In comments to the Times newspaper, Heidi Alexander stated she would hold talks with Sir Warren East, the former chief executive of Rolls-Royce and current chair of the Nats board, in the coming weeks.
She also revealed holding a "full and frank conversation" directly with Mr Rolfe, during which she had expressed her "anger at the situation".
She said: “The scale of the disruption that we experienced yesterday was bad enough and to see the impact at Prestwick yesterday was obviously very concerning to me.
“For people using our airports they would feel it adds injury to insult.
“I do understand airlines feel very angry about the situation that has transpired here and I understand why passengers who have been caught up in this will feel aggrieved.
“I’ve had a full and frank conversation with the chief executive of Nats, Martin Rolfe, and expressed my anger at the situation.
“I will be looking to meet the chair of Nats in the coming weeks.”
On Monday, airlines expressed their mounting dismay and anger at “yet another” air traffic control incident, and Ryanair repeated its calls for Mr Rolfe to resign.
Speaking to reporters that day as he travelled to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Prime Minister Andy Burnham was asked why he did not fire Mr Rolfe.
“Well, these are clearly serious issues and they need to be fully investigated, and I know the Transport Secretary is taking these issues extremely seriously,” he replied.
“Further issues today do cause even greater concern, but initially this is a matter for the Transport Secretary to get to the bottom of what is behind this and why there has been a recurrence.”
Speaking at a press conference in London on Wednesday, Ryanair’s chief executive repeatedly called for Mr Rolfe’s resignation, saying a 15-year-old “would be more competent or would deliver more effective service”.
He added: “The fundamental lesson to learn about Nats is it has an incompetent, overpaid CEO who needs to be dismissed.
“Four system collapses in the last four years, at a time when no other EU ATC computer system has collapsed even once, is unacceptable.
“Sack him and put somebody efficient or somebody effective and efficient in there to run it.
“Let’s put it this way: anybody, my 15-year-old, my 16-year-old child could do a better job than Martin Rolfe and at a fraction of his 1.5 million pay packet.”
The Ryanair boss told reporters that the 8 September incident had cost the airline between four and five million euro.
Nats has apologised for both incidents this month and for the disruption caused to passengers and airlines.
Mr Rolfe was appointed Nats chief executive in May 2015 after working as a managing director.
He has been at the helm of the company during four high-profile incidents, including a meltdown on August bank holiday in 2023 during which more than 700,000 passengers suffered disruption when flights were grounded at UK airports.
Last July a “radar-related issue” caused an air traffic control failure which disrupted thousands of passengers and forced the cancellation of more than 160 flights.
An initial report by Nats into the 8 September incident said it was caused by a “software defect” and that the fault had happened “in the space of a millisecond”.
Mr Rolfe previously apologised for the September 8 issue, for which he said he took “full responsibility”.
The Government has the largest shareholding in the public-private company at 49 per cent.
Read MoreRyanair boss wants fuel prices to soar to accelerate failure of rival airlines
Cancelled or delayed flights: What are my rights to a refund?
‘Software defect’ was cause of travel chaos that grounded thousands of flights
The best restaurants in the UK to visit this year, according to experts
Two cruise passengers return to hundreds of baby spiders in their car
America’s air traffic system is running on eBay parts and ancient Compaq computers
