SECURITY SCARE 'EXPOSED AT AIRPORT'

A TV documentary is set to reveal what it describes as "serious security lapses" at a major British airport.

An undercover investigation by ITV1's Tonight with Trevor McDonald found claimed "shocking failures" at Birmingham International Airport (BIA), including security officers sleeping while on duty and inadequate passenger searches.
The sixth-month investigation into the work of ICTS UK - one of the security firms used by BIA - also found planes left unguarded, poor staffing levels and luggage sent for extra checks ignored by officials, a statement from ITV said.
The programme - to be aired on Monday evening - sees one US Congress security expert call for flights from the airport to the US to be grounded after watching the footage.
Bennie G Thompson, chairman of the US Congress' Committee on Homeland Security, tells the programme: "There are so many things that have compromised that flight that I saw that nothing short of stopping it, and some sort of certification by some official that the standards are being met, should be the only reason that those flights should be allowed to start again."

ICTS UK is contracted by BIA to supply security staff to a number of airlines operating out of the airport, including the US-based Continental Airlines, which is featured in the programme.
The investigation - which also found that staff had not been properly briefed about terror threats and security alerts - was carried out by an employee, who has since resigned, plus an undercover ITV reporter employed at the time by the company.

In a statement, BIA said it had launched an inquiry following ITV's investigation and had taken action. It said the allegations related solely to ICTS UK, which provides "secondary screening to a limited number of airlines at BIA".
The statement continued: "We are confident that the actions already taken continue to assure the safety and security of passengers." The statement added that the airport was concerned that some security procedures may have been misunderstood.

In a statement issued to ITV for use on its programme, ICTS UK said it too had launched an investigation. "Upon receiving the Tonight with Trevor McDonald report, ICTS UK immediately initiated a full and thorough investigation into the limited material made available to us."