Airline authorities investigate weapons claim

British airline authorities are investigating claims that undercover journalists smuggled deadly weapons on board two domestic flights.

Reporters from the Sunday People say they carried two hi-tech knives and a razor-sharp cleaver on board British Airways flights from Heathrow and Manchester.

They were able to pass through security and x-ray machines at both airports without being searched or challenged, it is alleged.

On the way to Manchester the investigators sat just three rows from the cockpit of the Boeing 737, the newspaper says.

On the way back, security suspicions were never raised despite their spending just 30 minutes at Manchester airport before boarding a flight to London, it is claimed.

The smuggled weapons allegedly included a 4-inch blade hidden inside a lady's comb, a razor sharp toughened-metal stiletto concealed in a pen, and a steel cleaver which could be hidden in a wallet.

The newspaper claims the implements are imported from the United States and openly sold on the Internet by a Lancashire-based firm called Spytech UK.

British Airways has confirmed it will be launching its own investigation into the claims.

A spokesman said "We are very concerned to hear about this and will be talking to the Government to find what can be done to prevent such items getting on board aircraft."

The British Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions (DTLR) said it would also be investigating the allegations.