Undercover reporter 'walks up to Heathrow planes'

An undercover reporter revealed a major security lapse at Heathrow airport by repeatedly entering restricted areas, it emerged today.

The Sky News reporter easily entered British Airways offices and other out-of-bounds areas at the London airport which housed confidential security documents.

He also walked up to passenger planes on the tarmac just hours before they were due to take off, Sky reported today.

BA has launched an investigation into Sky’s report, while the British Airports Authority, which owns the airport, admitted “there was room for improvement“.

The reporter returned to the airport on a number of nights, carrying only a broom.

He said security staff challenged him only once, but staff even then did not ask for security credentials and he was allowed to carry on.

He found manuals detailing the airline’s security procedures inside an unlocked BA office.

The manuals detailed how staff are supposed to respond to bomb threats, how they are vetted before joining and procedures for negotiating with hijackers.

On another occasion the reporter entered a restricted area through a gap in razorwire surrounding the public viewing platform on top of Terminal 2.

He then spent 15 minutes walking unchecked and unnoticed around aircraft.

A BAA spokesman told Sky News: “Safety and security are the top priorities at Heathrow. We are constantly seeking ways to maintain an effective barrier between the landside and airside parts of the airport, and to remain alert to any potential vulnerabilities.

“On the basis of the information provided by Sky News, it would appear that there is room for improvement in this particular area of the airport and we have already taken steps to address that.”

BA said in a statement: “Safety and security are always our top priorities and we are extremely concerned to hear that an undercover reporter has taken some documents and a high visibility vest from one of our landside offices within Terminal 1 at London Heathrow.

“We have launched our own immediate investigation into the allegations made against the airline to ensure that appropriate action is taken to avoid this happening again.”