Boy thwarts British airport security

British police said last week they are investigating how a 12-year-old boy managed to board a plane at Londonีs Gatwick Airport during the security clampdown despite having neither a passport nor a boarding pass.

The youngster had run away from a care home in Merseyside, western England, and travelled to London by train before managing to get onto a plane bound for Lisbon on Monday, when British airports were still operating at their highest level of security following the thwarting of an alleged plot to blow up US-bound airliners in mid-flight.

He somehow managed to get through airport security, get on the plane and take a seat before a member of the Monarch Airlines crew noticed he had no boarding pass. He didnีt have a passport or any other travel documents either.
A crewmember alerted police, and two police officers boarded the plane and led the boy off.

Sussex Police said they were concerned by the security breach, The Times reported, and an investigation is under way to find out how the boy managed to get on the plane.

าThe boy had passed through a full security screening process and we are confident there was no threat to passengers, staff or the aircraft at any time,ำ a spokesman for the British Airports Authority (BAA) at Gatwick Airport said.

Security restrictions were heightened on Thursday when Britain raised its terror alert level to าcriticalำ over the alleged plot to blow up US-bound planes.

Twenty-five people were arrested in pre-dawn raids last week. One has since been released.

Britain last Monday lowered its terror threat level to าsevereำ - the fourth-highest level, but security restrictions at many airports were not eased until Tuesday.