Airport security 'exposed' on TV
CLAIMS of poor security at Manchester Airport will be made in a BBC documentary next week.
Undercover reporter Michelle Cox spent three months working as a security officer at the airport.
Her findings, which include hidden camera footage, will be broadcast in an hour-long programme called Whistleblower to be screened on BBC1 on Tuesday at 9pm.
It is timed to coincide with the third anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks on New York and Washington, when hijackers bypassed security.
It will include allegations that security staff waved passengers through without carrying out body searches - in order to tackle huge queues of passengers building up at peak periods.
It is understood one female security worker is recorded saying "We cheat" when asked about the rate of body searches.
Soon after the September 11 attacks, bosses at Manchester Airport were criticised for security cost-cutting. Wages were cut and jobs were axed at a time when America was ploughing more money into security at airports.
The cost-cutting was designed to reduce landing fees to attract more airlines, especially budget carriers, to Manchester.
Struggled
It resulted in a series of damaging strikes.
At the time, the airport was hit by three separate allegations of security breaches, once when a government inspector managed to get bomb equipment through a scanner undetected as part of a test; and twice when journalists smuggled blades on board aircraft.
It is known that airport bosses have struggled to recruit and keep staff because of the wages on offer and the unsocial shifts required.
Last month, the M.E.N. uncovered a security loophole when a reporter was able to gain access to restricted areas of Terminal 2 by punching a widely-available code into a door lock.
A Manchester Airport spokesman said: "The safety of the travelling public and our employees is our highest priority.
"Manchester Airport's procedures, systems and equipment are part of a robust effective defence system, comprising several different levels, which changes and evolves as necessary.
"Together with regular reviews and inspections, this provides an intricate system of checks and cross-checks which, taken together, provide a robust security net.
"The integrity of this security system works as a whole and is not dependent upon any one single element. "
"We take any allegations of shortcomings extremely seriously and any breaches in procedure are rectified immediately."
Do you feel safe at Manchester Airport?
John Scheerhout Manchester Evening News 4 September 2004