Passengers flying out of Gatwick face some of the longest delays in Europe.

Only two airports were worse than Gatwick for flight delays last month, according to a report published yesterday.

Eurocontrol, which manages European air space, said the UK had three times more delays than any other country .

Heathrow had the most delays on departing traffic, followed by Charles de Gaulle, Gatwick and Amsterdam.

Taking overall traffic levels into account, Gatwick, Stansted, Alicante and Manchester had the largest average delay per movement - more than seven minutes.

That was more than twice the average of Europe as a whole.

The worst-affected route was Palma to Manchester, with an average delay of 15.5 minutes.

The total amount of delay in the UK increased by more than 400,000 minutes in July, the busiest month for holiday travel.

In contrast, the total time of delays across Europe actually fell by more than a million minutes.

The UK had the largest average delay per movement of more than five minutes.

The report states: "It is worth noting that the United Kingdom featured, either as an arrival or departure, in 17 out of the first 20 most affected flows."

Computer failure in London, problems with equipment and staff shortages were blamed for the UK delays.

The part-privatised National Air Traffic Services (Nats) was also held largely responsible. The £620m air traffic control centre at Swanwick, Hampshire, only opened in January, over budget and more than five years behind schedule.

The centre has been plagued by software glitches and staff shortages.

A Nats spokesman said: "Obviously we regret the level of delays for the first part of the year and the inconvenience to travellers."

The centre's performance was slowly getting better. Some 62 controllers were in training at Swanwick and 130 more would be taken on this year.