BAA's stranglehold over Britain's leading airports could be broken in response to near universal criticism of the way it runs Heathrow, the UK's competition watchdog will announce next week when it unveils details of its inquiry into the company.
The break-up is one of a series of options the Competition Commission will probe in response to allegations that BAA is under-regulated and too free to exploit its near-monopoly status, people familiar with the investigation say.
Willie Walsh, British Airways' chief executive, yesterday added a fresh broadside to the flurry of attacks on BAA, condemning standards at Heathrow as "not acceptable".
"BAA must recruit additional personnel and invest in the right equipment, so we can get back to offering good customer service," he said.
Mr Walsh described talks with BAA aimed at resolving long-standing and unpopular hand-baggage restrictions as "constructive", although he said the airports operator's approach lacked urgency.
BAA hit back at Mr Walsh's criticisms, saying it had taken on 550 security staff and increased the number of security check lanes by a quarter in the past year. It said it expected the commission inquiry to look beyond the "short term, balance-sheet-driven comments of airlines".
