The move follows a report from the Competition Commission which suggested that the company should sell a number of its UK airports.

Colin Matthews, BAA's chief executive, said: "We have decided to begin the process of selling Gatwick Airport immediately.

"When the Competition Commission published its provisional findings, we said that we would be realistic in our response, though we disagree with the Commission's report and the analysis on which it is founded.

"We will continue to present our case, in respect of the South East airports and those in Scotland. At Stansted, we believe that a change of ownership would interfere with the process of securing planning approval for a second runway, which remains a key feature of Government air transport policy.