LONDON, Dec. 27 (Xinhua)-- France's Vinci Airports will take a majority stake in Gatwick Airport, British second busiest airport, sources said on Thursday.

The U.S. Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) will sell 50.01 percent of the shareholding to Vinci Airports and the transaction is expected to complete by the middle of 2019, Gatwick said on its website.

The deal is approximately 2.9 billion pounds, and the other 49.99 percent will be managed by GIP. Gatwick will become the largest single airport in Vinci Airports' growing worldwide network, according to a statement from Vinci Airports, a leading worldwide airport operator with a network of 46 airports in 12 countries.

Gatwick's Chairman David Higgins welcomed the move as " a vote of confidence in Gatwick and its future potential ".

"This is good news for the airport as it will mean both continuity but also further investment for passengers over the coming years to improve our services further. We currently fly to over 220 destinations around the world and are ambitious to do even more in the years ahead,"said Gatwick's chief executive Stewart Wingate. (One pound = 1.26 U.S. dollars)