BAA sees no flight cancellations on holiday weekend

British airport operator BAA is putting additional resources in place to prevent flight cancellations this weekend amid heightened security measures following a suspected bomb plot, the company said yesterday.

"We intend to run a full schedule this weekend and we are resourcing up to make sure we do," said a spokesman for BAA, which is owned by Spain's Ferrovial.

BAA, which owns London's Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted airports, declined to say how much of the cost of implementing new security measures would be passed on to airlines.

Under UK regulations, BAA can pass on three-quarters of the costs of implementing government security directives over a threshold of 23 million pounds a year at the three airports.

The threshold for Heathrow is £14 million a year. BAA declined to say whether it would be passing on additional exceptional costs to airlines this year.

The spokesman said BAA has absorbed some extraordinary security costs in the past, such as recruiting extra security staff following the September 2001 attacks in the United States.

"It is when a significant enhancement (in security) is needed or a significant directive comes along that's when it kicks in," the spokesman said.

Some airlines said this week they were worried about flight cancellations at London airports during the busy bank holiday weekend. Baggage handling staff at London's Stansted airport are threatening to strike this weekend.

British Airways, Ryanair, easyJet and other airlines were forced to cancel hundreds of flights after stepped-up security measures were introduced on August 10.