BA introduces £2.50 insurance surcharge

War on Terrorism: Airlines

Passengers travelling on British Airways flights will pay a £2.50 surcharge to fund additional security and insurance.

It will be payable on each international and domestic journey after changes to airline security in response to the terrorist attacks on America.

The airline's announcement yesterday follows the introduct-ion of bullet-proof armoured cockpit doors, currently being installed on British Airways and rival Virgin Atlantic aircraft. The charge will come into force on Friday and none of the 40 million annual BA passengers will be exempt from paying it.

BA, whose insurance premiums have gone up substantially, said it had also increased security around aircraft on the ground. It said more than 124 airlines had introduced a similar surcharge since the attacks. The airline's director of sales, Dale Moss, said 11 September had made safety and security a "number one priority".

* An investigation is under way at Stansted airport one over claims that a journalist and photographer from The Mirror got into a passenger plane's cockpit.