BA head slams MPs over Heathrow queues

British Airways’ top official has criticised the government over the current immigration crisis at Heathrow airport.

Travel Insurance News - 03/05/2012

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Willie Walsh, chief executive of the British flag carrier’s parent firm, International Airlines Group (IAG), said on Wednesday that official estimates of 90-minute waits at Heathrow’s border queues were false, adding that some passengers were forced to wait longer than two and a half hours.

The news comes as the west London airport continues to see the longest queues in history, albeit just a few months before it is to be the main entry points for thousands of extra visitors from around the world arriving for the 2012 London Olympic Games.

Mr Walsh said in the interview with BBC radio that the government’s figures were “misleading” and said that British Airways’ investigation was “detailed and accurate” and showed queue times as high as two hours and 31 minutes.

However, Damian Green, the immigration minister defended the official figures from the UK Border Force and said that the report was “as accurate as can be”. He said that people’s frustration was understandable and said steps were being taken to provide relief, including the building of a new central control unit for Border Agency operations at Heathrow.

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