Gatwick Airport put up for sale

The Spanish-owned airport operator BAA said it was beginning the sale process for the West Sussex airport immediately, adding that customers, staff and business would benefit.

The move followed a damning report last month by the Competition Commission, which spoke of poor levels of service for airlines and passengers and proposed that BAA should give up running two of its three London airports.

BAA chief executive Colin Matthews said the decision to sell Gatwick - used by 35 million passengers a year - had not been taken lightly.

He added that the company wanted to continue to operate its two other London airports - Heathrow and Stansted - as well as its other south- east England airport, Southampton.

Virgin Atlantic chief executive Steve Ridgway said he was delighted BAA had ended the uncertainty over Gatwick, adding that his airline would 'relish the opportunity to bid for Gatwick as part of a consortium and inject our customer service expertise into any future running of the airport'.

For the full story, see the West Sussex Gazette issue dated September 24