Luton Airport ATC contract.

[OrsonCart]

My friends in Bedfordshire tell me that they will shortly become employees of NATS. The staff there have battled away tirelessly to get a good deal. They should get offers of employment very shortly.

I am told that if the Luton Board 'rubber stamps' the deal between Luton Airport and NATS in late September, the unit could become NATS controlled by November.

My mates in Bedfordshire also tell me that there are a number of issues still to be resolved, but they will not hinder the progress of the contract unless they are 'show stoppers'.

Good to see our employer working hard to secure new business and friendship. The guys at Luton are apprehensive, let us make them very welcome as they have experienced life controlled by profit for the shareholder at almost any cost already.

------------------


[This message has been edited by OrsonCart (edited 02 September 2000).]

[This message has been edited by OrsonCart (edited 02 September 2000).]

[Shazbat]

Hmmmmmmm......seems to me they won't find anything different then !!!!!!!!!

[Spotter]

It will be interesting to see if their terms & conditions will be any different to other NATS units.

[OrsonCart]

They should be the same as all our other units, although TUPE is involved somewhere.

------------------

[get'em to heaven & back]

shazbat:- see your interests are "professionalism in aviation". let me know when you find some within NATS!

[Glum Weeper]

Thought I saw something in "Transmit" recently regarding Luton getting a new radar room. Does this mean the Approach function won`t be farmed out to TC, or is this still part of the contract negotiations?
Anyone got any info?

[Bright-Ling]

I believe that the Radar is going to TC - live in Jan/Feb 2001 me thinks.

They are planning to use the spare suite just to the RIGHT of SS Fin/Int.

[Dan Dare]

I heard Luton on the RTF saying they don't provide a FIS any more. When they move to LATCC will that be the end of LARS in that busy corner of the TMA? Does safety not matter outside CAS any more? Who makes these decissions?

[identnospeed]

Dan Dare,

Unfortunately NATS doesn't make its money on ATSORA ..... With PPP imminent (?), this will become more and more the case. With staff shortages, managers are looking to apply their staff in the most effective way and that means services for a/c outside CAS comes very close to the bottom of the priority list.

INS

[Flybywyre]

"Don't provide FIS anymore"....they should be (subject to workload), or are they just practising the new RT calls ready for when they move to LATCC ?

FBW

[OrsonCart]

As I understand it, the contract between Luton and NATS is to deliver flights safely from and to both RWY's 26 and 08. There is no contract to provide LARS. Flight Information outside Luton CAS is avaialble from London FIR.

My understanding is that until the financial incentives improve, more and more radar units could remove the LARS facility as it is outside their core operation.

LARS is something for nothing to the general aviation community, now if they paid directly for it...... I hear the scramble of units willing to provide the service.

[Bright-Ling]

The trouble with LARS is......

(a) We all hate having to do it
(b) It doesn't bring any revenue into the company

BUT...without it...

(a) You would have people LEGALLY just outside the zone boundary bimbling around with no transponder and then probably straying unintentionaly entering CAS.

and

(b) Some units are scaled for extra ATCO's purely because of the LARS task.

>>>>which equals more jobs for the boys!

[This message has been edited by Bright-Ling (edited 07 September 2000).]

[Flybywyre]

Bright-Ling..............Good points.

Do you not think that, given how busy the airspace can get around there, it would be in everybody's interest (including NATS) to make LARS available?
And before anybody say's "who's going to pay for it", I'll answer that question: NATS.....in the interest of safety!

FBW