A High Court judge was due to rule today on accusations that the Government mishandled the issue of Gatwick's second runway.

Transport Secretary Alistair Darling is accused of setting up an "unfair and unlawful" consultation exercise into air travel in the South-East which left out the possibility of expansion at Gatwick.

The accusations come from local authorities and residents opposing the expansion of Stansted Airport or the option of an airport at Cliffe in Kent.

Their challenge centres on a consultation document published last July which is expected to influence the contents of a White Paper due in 2003.

The options included a third runway for Heathrow, expanding Stansted from one runway to four and a four-runway airport at Cliffe.

Gatwick was missed out because of a 1979 agreement between the British Airports Authority and West Sussex County Council which said there would be no new runway at the airport for 40 years.

Striking French air traffic controllers continued to disrupt flights at Gatwick today.

As the 32-hour strike began last night, dozens of flights to France were cancelled.

The strike did not affect other flights to and from the airport.

A spokesman for airport operator BAA said: "It is mainly British Airways which has been badly hit. It has cancelled 38 flights today."

Union Amicus today continued talks with BAA to avert a series of UK airport strikes due to start on Thursday.