Airline passengers faced another day of delays and cancelations yesterday as airports struggled to restore flight schedules that were disrupted after authorities thwarted an alleged plot to blow up US-bound aircraft.
"It is going to be another difficult day today, both for airports and for passengers, but there is cause for optimism that we will get more flights off today," said Stephen Nelson, chief executive of the British Airports Authority, which runs Britain's major airports.
"There will be queues, there will be cancelations, but we are making progress," he said in an interview with British Broadcasting Corp radio.
PHOTO: AFP
Airports canceled hundreds of flights on Thursday after police said they had foiled a plot to blow up as many as 10 jets. Airlines banned passengers from carrying hand luggage after reports that terrorists were planning to use common electronic devices to detonate liquid explosives concealed in sports drink bottles.
At London's main airport, Heathrow, around 70 percent of flights were running yesterday, but many passengers turned around and headed home after an early morning announcement that a raft of flights had been canceled, including British Airways services to San Francisco and Los Angeles.
At a busy Terminal 1, British Airways corralled passengers in a large marquee before they were allowed inside to check in.
There were long lines in the departure hall, and most passengers carried permitted carry-on items in clear plastic bags.
"I quite understand all the checks. I know why they have got to do it," said Elaine Loman, who was hoping to catch a flight to Barcelona, Spain.
At London's Stansted Airport, staff said they had canceled 59 flights on budget carriers easyJet and Ryanair.
An airport spokesman said hundreds of passengers unable to fly on Thursday had spent the night at the airport in hopes of catching new flights.
And at Gatwick, southeast of the capital, the British Airports Authority said it had canceled 44 scheduled flights on a variety of airlines.
Officials warned travelers to check with their airline before traveling to the airport.
A company spokesman said travelers with electronic car keys were creating additional delays at security barriers, and advised travelers to pack such items in their hold baggage.
Staff at Manchester Airport said there are likely to be cancelations later yesterday as flights from Heathrow fail to arrive. Flights on Continental, PIA, and Delta Airlines to New York, and US Airways flights to Philadelphia were delayed.
SEEKING CHANGE: A hospital worker said she did not vote in previous elections, but ‘now I can see that maybe my vote can change the system and the country’ Voting closed yesterday across the Solomon Islands in the south Pacific nation’s first general election since the government switched diplomatic allegiance from Taiwan to Beijing and struck a secret security pact that has raised fears of the Chinese navy gaining a foothold in the region. The Solomon Islands’ closer relationship with China and a troubled domestic economy weighed on voters’ minds as they cast their ballots. As many as 420,000 registered voters had their say across 50 national seats. For the first time, the national vote also coincided with elections for eight of the 10 local governments. Esther Maeluma cast her vote in the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was