BRITAIN: Ministers have demanded an urgent inquiry into the second serious breach of security at Heathrow Airport in five weeks, which saw robbers escape with $3.2 million (€3.6 million) in a carefully planned hijack yesterday.
Despite the introduction of tougher security measures after September 11th and after last month's raid when a gang stole £4.6 million, two men, one with a knife, passed through security checks and held up a security van in a cargo loading area in Terminal 4 shortly before 7.30 a.m.
The money had just been taken off a South African Airways flight from Johannesburg in two large silver containers and transferred to a secure van operated by ADI Securicor.
Two men, believed to be Asian, entered the secure loading area and overpowered the van driver, forcing him to drive out of the airport complex to Cranford, west London, five miles away.
The containers of money were then transferred into another vehicle and the two men drove away. The Department of Transport said the British Airport Authority (BAA) was responsible for implementing security at the airport and ministers had "demanded an urgent report" from BAA about the raid, just five weeks after the last inquiry into security at Heathrow was launched.
Scotland Yard's Flying Squad launched a major investigation into the raid, which took place only half an hour after a man was arrested in another part of London in connection with February's robbery. He was released last night without charge.
Scotland Yard said it had "no knowledge" of reports that a South African government minister was on the plane.
The men who took part in the February raid are also believed to be Asian but it is unclear whether the two robberies are linked.
But Mr Chris Yates, aviation security editor for Jane's Transport Magazine, said yesterday's raid must have been carried out with inside information."If they can get airside they have access to aircraft," he said.