Heathrow-based air traffic controller Ady Dolan, recently gave an interview on BBC Radio Newcastle, talking about day to day operations at the world’s busiest dual runway airport.

Not many people get the chance to work in an iconic building that is so striking on the skyline that it has become a part of a city’s identity. But that’s the case for air traffic controllers, engineers and support staff who are based at the NATS operation in Edinburgh.

With 2013 drawing to a close, it’s time for the obligatory review of the year.

Every year our controller help guide Santa Claus through UK airspace, but that’s only part of the story. His journey through UK airspace has to be carefully planned, taking into account his delivery schedule and the weight of the onboard cargo, weeks in advance.

NATS employees working at airports face a number of challenges in ensuring they provide a safe and efficient service to their customers. But in few places will they find the sort of daily complexities that are faced at Cardiff Airport.

We now operate in more than 30 countries around the world. That includes providing air traffic control services at 15 airports in the UK. We’ve decided to shine a spotlight on those domestic operations and over the next few months we will be bringing you a profile of each of our UK operations. We start today with Stansted.

Our Chief Executive, Richard Deakin, gave a speech at the Airport Operators Association annual conference. It was a wide ranging speech, taking in market contestability, airport capacity, regulation, Europe and the environment, so we thought it was worth reproducing here in full.

We asked an expert from inside NATS to get out the popcorn and give us an accuracy rating for that quintessential ATC movie, Pushing Tin

During periods of bad weather such as fog, control has to switch to radar and ‘low visibility procedures’ to ensure airport operations can continue safely.

BBC Sussex ran its usual Breakfast Show from Gatwick Airport this morning. BBC Sussex ran its usual Breakfast Show from Gatwick Airport this morning. Steve Anderson, General Manager at NATS Gatwick, was interviewed and asked about his time at the tower and working in air traffic control.