Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) has sold a 15% stake in London Gatwick Airport to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), and South Korea's National Pension Service (NPS) says it intends to buy a 12% shareholding

for approximately ?100m ($159.6m).

These share sales are in line with GIP's earlier stated position that it would sell some minor stakes in the airport, while maintaining majority control. These developments follow last year's ?1.5bn ($2.5bn) acquisition of Gatwick Airport by GIP from BAA.

Meanwhile, Gatwick Airport has reported that it handled a total of 32.3m passengers in 2009, a -5.3% decline on 2008, with European scheduled passenger numbers some 5.6% up to 15.3m, but European charter passengers down 18.9% to 5.2m. North Atlantic traffic also fell by 35.4% to 2.1m. while 'other long haul' fell by 3.1% to 4.5m.

Commenting on the results, Stewart Wingate, London Gatwick Airport's Ceo said he was nevertheless pleased with the December results: ‘I am pleased to end the year with a third consecutive month of growth in passenger numbers, which demonstrates that Gatwick Airport is recovering well from the economic downturn.

‘While overall annual passenger numbers were lower than in 2008, the newly independent Gatwick Airport will compete strongly to become the airport of choice for airlines and passengers in 2010 and beyond.’