British air traffic controllers hope to expand worldwide as governments seek to privatise aviation services.
National Air Traffic Services is bidding to operate the airspace around 13 airports in Spain and is also working in Hong Kong and Oman.
The company said yesterday that its export contracts had helped it to increase profits last year by 35 per cent to £106.1 million.
The record profits come ten years after NATS was privatised. It is run as a public-private partnership between seven airlines and the Government.
Its chief executive said that the company had a head start when it came to bidding to provide air traffic services in other countries because it was one of the first to make the change. Richard Deakin added: “There will be more deregulation of the skies in the years ahead and we are well placed to take advantage of that.” NATS is also talking to governments in the Middle East and Asia. “Aviation has grown very quickly in these parts of the world, but there has to be the same level of investment in air traffic control infrastructure,” Mr Deakin said.
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Since privatisation, an £80 million-a-year loss has been turned into a substantial profit. The company increased turnover last year by 3 per cent to £777.3 million and paid a dividend of £42.5 million in 2011/12 financial year.
The Government has retained a 49 per cent shareholding in NATS, while a consortium called the Airline Group holds 42 per cent. The remainder is owned by BAA and NATS staff.