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BA flight takes off as Gatwick is caught up in grenade drama

THE British Airways flight from London to Bermuda yesterday took off just before part of Gatwick Airport was closed down after a man carrying a live hand grenade was arrested.

Sussex police said the 37-year-old Venezuelan had been arrested by officers after his arrival at the airport, Britain's busiest after Heathrow, from Colombia when a suspicious item was found in his luggage.

The British Airways flight he had joined had come from Caracas, via Bogota and Barbados. It is hoped that tomorrow's flights between London and Bermuda will not be affected by the disruption.

The airport authority BAA said the north terminal at Gatwick - from where the Bermuda flight departed - had been closed yesterday afternoon and all outgoing flights suspended. BA spokesperson Sallie Singleton said yesterday afternoon that BA had suspended 17 services, but the Bermuda flight had left in time to avoid the disruption.

She said: "The Bermuda flight left from the north terminal at 3.04 p.m., before the terminal was evacuated as a precaution by the police."

At press time, it was understood that last night's flight from Bermuda to London was likely to go ahead as normal, as while the north terminal remained closed flights were being redirected to land at the south terminal.

Mrs. Singleton said yesterday afternoon: "We are in constant communication with London and we are planning to operate our flight from Bermuda on Saturday, anticipating that Gatwick will be operating as normal." British police were already on high alert for an al Qaeda terror attack. The arrested man was handed over to anti-terrorist police and taken to London.