Gatwick terminal evacuated over suspect vehicle

Passengers at Gatwick airport were evacuated last night during a full security alert when a vehicle was found abandoned near the south terminal.

Army bomb disposal experts were called in as roads were closed, and trains stopped running causing widespread travel delays.

The perimeter road and the A23 leading to the airport were cordoned off after the discovery of the vehicle just before 9pm yesterday. The south terminal of Britain's second biggest airport was evacuated, although it remained open, with passengers being routed through another entrance. The north terminal was not affected.

"There is a road that travels underneath the south terminal and the vehicle was found in a layby," said Inspector Gavin Whitehouse, of Sussex police. "A member of the public brought the matter to police attention."

Police declined to say what sort of vehicle it was.

Gatwick Express which runs the direct route from central London to Gatwick said services had been suspended.

Passengers were told last night to check with the airport over their flight plans and to avoid travelling unless necessary. British Airways said it was unaffected by the problems.

Police in London were put on their highest state of alert last month after warnings that an al-Qa'ida suicide attack was imminent.

In February, troops and tanks were dispatched to Heathrow airport in response to intelligence that terrorists threatened to shoot down an aeroplane with a shoulder-held rocket launcher. More than 400 soldiers and around 1,700 extra police officers were drafted in to the airport and other key London locations.

In the same month a man was stopped at Gatwick after a grenade was allegedly found in his luggage. Hasil Mohammed Rahaham-Alan, a 37-year-old Venezuelan, was charged with terrorist-related offences. In March this year, a Portuguese national was arrested after two home-made bombs were found at a flat in Crawley, West Sussex, near Gatwick.