Thousands of passengers change flights ahead of strike
29.11.11
Thousands of passengers have cancelled flights to and from the UK for tomorrow following warnings that a strike by Border Agency staff could cause delays of up to 12 hours. A local MP has also called for Heathrow to be closed for the day, for safety reasons.
Heathrow Airport said today it was waiting to hear from airlines how much they had managed to reduce their loads following warnings that it could take 12 hours for passengers to get through immigration when staff join a strike by public sector workers. Virgin Atlantic said over 1000 passengers - around one third of its total capacity - had changed their flights to avoid landing in the UK tomorrow.
However, many airlines have said that they will continue to operate normal services throughout tomorrow, despite fears that airports could grind to a standstill. BA said that it is still planning to operate ‘a normal schedule’. Although it is giving passengers booked on flights due to arrive in the UK on Wednesday the option to switch to another flight this week at no additional cost in an attempt to reduce loads, it has not cancelled flights.
The expected chaos has seen a local MP call for Heathrow to be shut tomorrow on safety grounds. Hayes and Harlington Labour MP John McDonnell, whose constituency includes the airport, said it was clear large numbers of staff at the airport would be joining the industrial action.
Although attempts had been made to bring in extra staff, it still meant that safety and security would be ‘in the hands of workers who are untrained in airport security or, at most, have had an inadequate couple of days' training,’ he said adding: ‘I believe that if the government cannot settle this dispute in the next 24 hours the airport should be closed to ensure the safety and security of all those travelling and working at Heathrow.'
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