President George W. Bush has apologised to Britain over the US's failure to declare two aircraft were carrying missiles bound for Israel when they refuelled at a Scottish airport.
Britain's Civil Aviation Authority is investigating whether the US had applied for the necessary exemptions to carry hazardous material on two chartered Airbus A310 cargo planes that refuelled at Glasgow's Prestwick airport last weekend.
"President Bush did apologise for the fact that proper procedures were not followed,"Prime Minister Tony Blair's official spokesman told reporters following talks between the two leaders in Washington. "It was a gracious thing to do."
British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett had earlier complained to US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on the sidelines of international talks in Rome on Wednesday, warning British procedures had been violated.
Mr Blair had been urged to demand an apology from Mr Bush after learning that the two aircraft were carrying 28 GBU28 laser-guided missiles bound from the US to Israel.
PA