Robert Brown bludgeoned 46-year-old Joanna Simpson with a claw hammer in their family home in October 2010 as their two young children cowered in a playroom.

The killing was the subject of a recent two-part ITV documentary The British Airways Killer.

Brown’s High Court challenge against a Government move to block his automatic release from prison was dismissed by Mr Justice Ritchie on Wednesday.

Brown, who was jailed for 26 years in 2011, claimed that “political motivation” amid a media campaign against his release improperly contributed to a decision to refer his case to the Parole Board.

His lawyers argued at a hearing in London earlier this month that Justice Secretary Alex Chalk’s referral was unlawful.

Brown was cleared of murder after a trial, but admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, with a psychiatric report saying he suffered from an “adjustment disorder”.

Aged 47 at sentencing, Brown believed he was “stitched up” by a prenuptial agreement and was affected by stress linked to his divorce, a judge was told.

He was due to be automatically freed on licence halfway through his sentence in November last year, but Ms Simpson’s friends and family urged Mr Chalk to intervene.

In October 2023, the minister used new powers to have Brown’s case reviewed by the Parole Board, an independent body that carries out risk assessments on prisoners to determine whether they can be safely released.

Brown’s lawyers argued the referral was “an obvious attempt to seek to reverse engineer justification for a decision that was in reality prompted and obtained through conscious or unconscious political bias”.

His legal team said the risk posed by Brown had not increased and that he had been “subjected to a high-profile campaign through the media and with politicians that has sought to block his release”.

The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) rejected his allegations, arguing that Mr Chalk “in no way seeks to ‘go behind’ or ‘disapply’ or ‘fail to respect’ the sentencing court’s decision”.

Lawyers for the department said Mr Chalk believed Brown “would pose a significant risk of serious harm to the public if released on licence”, adding that the offender had “persistently refused to engage in the rehabilitative elements of his sentence”.

Mr Chalk’s referral, enabled through a “power to detain” provision introduced through the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, overrode Brown’s automatic release.

Ms Simpson’s mother, Diana Parkes, has previously urged the Parole Board to “keep him in jail” and was made a CBE in December for services to vulnerable children suffering from domestic abuse and domestic homicide.

Read the full story originally published at standard.co.uk

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The suspect, 24, who worked at Terminal 5, is said to have charged customers £25,000 a time to abuse a loophole in order to fly them across the BA network without crucial visa documents.

Police are working with counterparts in India to try to trace the man, who vanished with his BA ground services partner after being arrested and bailed.

As part of his fiddle, he got clients, most from India, to fly to the UK on a temporary visitor visa where he arranged for them to jet elsewhere.

Other clients were UK-based asylum claimants who feared being returned to their country of origin.

Canadian authorities raised the alarm after years of BA flights to Toronto or Vancouver on which arrivals would immediately declare asylum.

A probe found all were checked in by the same man who falsely verified the travellers had an eTA — electronic travel authorisation — to enter a chosen country.

An eTA can be applied for by a passenger only in their country of origin, and would have been rejected without the BA official’s help.

He was nicked on January 6 but bailed after which he flew to India, from Heathrow, where he has bought several homes, it is said.

A source told The Sun last night: “He exploited a loophole knowing that immigration checks are no longer carried out by officials but are left to airline staff.

“By inputting wrong data, and claiming eTA documents had been secured, he got people to countries they had no permission to enter in the first place.

“On arrival, the bogus passengers would shred their documents and claim asylum.

“Many jetted to Britain to pay him to get them to Canada.

“Others had been stuck in the UK immigration system for up to 10 years, and feared being sent back to their country of origin.

Read the full story originally published at thesun.co.uk

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Holidaymakers had been returning to London from Gran Canaria tonight when the pilots were forced to make the emergency landing.

The plane was over northern France when the plane declared a 7700 general emergency.

The BA2707 flight took off from Gran Canaria Airport at 6.30pm today.

It was set to land at London Gatwick Airport – but instead landed at Brest, France, at 10.53pm.

The squawk code was issued at around 10pm.

A BA spokesperson said: “The flight diverted due to a customer requiring medical attention where it landed normally.

“Our teams are working to ensure customers are able to continue their journey as soon as possible.”

Read the originally published story at The Sun

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The aircraft was travelling from Aberdeen to London Heathrow this morning when the alarm was raised.

Flight BA1307 departed shortly before 11am and was due to land in the capital at 12:25pm.

But it was forced to divert to Edinburgh Airport after broadcasting an emergency squawk signal.

Footage from Flightradar24 shows the aircraft circling several times above West Lothian before continuing to Edinburgh.

A BA spokesperson said: “Our aircraft diverted to Edinburgh due to a minor technical issue where it landed normally.

“Our teams are working to ensure customers reach their destination as soon as possible.”

We recently told how an EasyJet flight from Scotland was seconds away from crashing in the Alps in a terrifying close call.

The Airbus A320 Neo left Edinburgh Airport with 157 passengers and was due to land at Geneva’s Cointrin Airport.

Read more at thescottishsun.co.uk

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Especially when British Airways launches new deals on all short holidays in the USA, with hundreds costing from £582pp.

The British holiday company has flights to more than 15 US locations, most of which can be visited over three nights.

• Check out the best deals on the British Airways USA sale here

If you are not set on a particular destination and want to spend more time exploring and travelling less, Boston usually has the shortest flight times from the UK.

The Massachusetts capital city is followed by New York, Chicago, Miami and New Orleans, averaging 7 to 11 hours.

All the locations offer their unique charm, with anything from the busy streets of New York to the world-renowned nightlife of Miami or the rich cultural legacy of New Orleans.

The flag carrier flies from more than ten airports across the nation, so there should be deals to suit everyone.

Here are some of the best US city breaks we’ve spotted for this year:

• 3 nights at Park Central Hotel New York in New York, USA – from £582pp
• 3 nights at Clinton South Beach in Miami, USA – from £629pp
• 3 nights at Selina Catahoula in New Orleans, USA – from £663pp
• 3 nights at Hilton Garden Inn Chicago Downton South Loop in Chicago, USA – from £669pp
• 3 nights at Four Points by Sheraton Wakefield Boston Hotel in Boston, USA – from £675pp

We understand that three days might seem like a short time to visit anywhere in the USA, but you’ll still have plenty of time to explore.

A top tip is to prepare a detailed itinerary before you leave to ensure you hit all the most popular spots in an order that makes sense without travelling back and forth in your chosen city.

On top of that, a sleep expert revealed a ‘foolproof way to avoid jet lag‘, that even astronauts swear by.

If you still think you’d need more time to enjoy your holiday, we’ve also found some pretty good deals on seven-night stays in Florida.

Here are some of the best ones we’ve found with BA, under £1,000pp:

• 7 nights at Ramada Plaza Resort & Suites International Drive in Orlando, Florida – from £640pp
• 7 nights at Coco Key Hotel and Water Park Resort in Orlando, Florida – from £699pp
• 7 nights at Universal’s Surfside Inn and Suites in Orlando, Florida – from £863pp

All British Airways package holidays include return flights, accommodation and baggage allowance.

When flying long-haul, passengers can bring up to two bags into the cabin – as long as they don’t weigh more than 23kg each.

When it comes to checked luggage, passengers can check in up to ten bags weighing no more than 23kg for economy and premium economy and 32kg for business and first class.

Read the full story originally published on thesun.co.uk

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As passengers waited patiently in their seats on Saturday morning, the captain wrongly activated the inflatable escape slide, delaying the flight for hours and costing the airline £50,000.

Emergency services rushed to Gate 24E at Heathrow at around 9.55am, where the BA886 flight was ready to leave for its destination of Romania.

It was reported in The Sun that the captain was immediately taken off flying duties, but passengers had to wait more than three hours for another aircraft and pilot.

The pilot allegedly failed to disarm the plane door when he opened it to pass documents to members of the crew.

If he had disarmed the door, the slide would not have been deployed.

A source told The Sun: ‘This is beyond a rookie error. It’s totally baffling to understand.’

British Airways and Heathrow have been contacted by MailOnline for comment.

News Source Link

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The Sun was the first media outlet invited inside the airline’s new security-restricted nerve centre – dubbed ‘Mission Control’ – to showcase cutting edge technology making flying better.

The carrier’s biggest-ever outlay in its business is revolutionising how it works – soaring past rivals with a data-led automated operation which allows passenger complaints to be resolved in real time.

As we were ushered inside BA’s Integrated Operations Control Centre on Wednesday, 95,513 passengers were waiting to board one of the airline’s 712 flights.

In the hectic summer months British Airways can handle around 140,000 flyers on 850 services a day.

And considering unscheduled issues will hit passengers on around 70% of flights, that’s a lot of unhappy flyers needing urgent help.

So six separate computer systems for different areas of BA have now been jettisoned for one giant global interface which unites the airline – streamlining services and tracking aircraft movements.

The live-data is beamed into BA’s Heathrow hub on huge screens, allowing bosses to take pre-emptive action to limit operational hazards.

“It’s like an elaborate game of computer puzzle Tetris”, Richard Anderson, the airline’s Director of Global Operations, told The Sun.

Ground-breaking immediate responses to limit disruption are now the norm – meaning a smoother and seamless travel experience for flyers.

Latest technology allows managers to liaise with crew and passengers at 30,000ft as problems arise.

The Sun looked on as staff monitored 700 flights in a 24-hour period, with 40 flights in motion at one time.

Electronic updates inside the nerve centre revealed the carrier was hitting 90% punctuality on services leaving Heathrow before 9.30am.

A huge 50% of BA’s operations fly out of the West London airport.

Across the hub, BA’s ‘Pre-Ops’ team allocates its fleet of 256 aircraft to the airline’s monster schedule.

Staff work alongside the new decision support tool ‘Pathfinder’ to create the optimal combination between aircraft and flights up to 10 days before departure.

The technology uses swathes of data to create a flight schedule minimising delays after analysing weather, air traffic control, aircraft capacity and customer connections.

And BA staff are ready and able to react to sudden events in seconds.

The Sun observed as a weather storm closed in in Iceland, meaning extra BA jets were allocated to the region to ensure passengers would not be stranded.

And hotels were immediately lined up for any passengers still unable to leave Keflavik.

Strike disruption in Frankfurt meant switching the schedule so bigger BA jets with more seats could fly to Germany, preventing travel chaos and stranded passengers.

A passenger dropped off by her mother at the airport in Dusseldorf for a flight to LA via London was airborne when her mum tragically died in a car crash.

BA sorted all the logistics for the devastated flyer, meaning she dodged a four hour US Customs delay in the US and so immediately caught a return flight from LA, landing back in Germany the following day.

Another passenger who missed his Heathrow flight couldn’t then reach his scheduled connection in Hong Kong to get to his son’s graduation in Sydney.

Read the full story originally published on the The Sun

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The UK flag carrier received the accolades at the Head for Points Travel & Loyalty Awards, with the winners announced at an industry dinner at The Crypt by Bleeding Heart in London. It was hosted by Sky News’ Jonathan Samuels and attended by representatives of the nominated airlines, hotel groups, airport lounges and travel rewards credit cards.

Over 6,000 readers of Head for Points cast their votes for the awards in recognition of ‘the best services that the UK has to offer for the business and premium leisure traveller’.

British Airways was praised by Head for Points for investing in its premium economy cabin (‘World Traveller Plus’). It said: ‘British Airways has been investing its World Traveller Plus experience significantly over the past five years, and this win goes to show it has all paid off.

‘Upgraded meals, blankets, pillows and amenity kits mean the cabin is now a real step up from economy, whilst – finally! – the launch of dedicated check-in and baggage-drop desks at airports seems to have given it the edge compared to our last awards.’

The Best Business Class Seat and Service gong went to Qatar Airlines and its ‘Qsuite’.

Head for Points said: ‘From the unique Qsuite with privacy door and on-demand a la carte dining, and touch-screen entertainment inflight info, to comfortable loungewear, Diptyque amenities and highly attentive service, it’s no wonder Qatar Airways is the winner in this category.’

BA’s lounge award came courtesy of the BA Concorde Room at Heathrow Terminal 5.

Head for Points said: ‘The Concorde Room – exclusively for ticketed First Class passengers departing from Heathrow Terminal 5 – shows that British Airways can do good quality table service lounge food and premium drinks. Let’s see it rolled out to the Gold and Business Class lounges too!’

The BA loyalty scheme award, meanwhile, was thanks to the airline’s Executive Club, with Head for Points commenting: ‘It’s unsurprising that readers of a UK-focused frequent flyer site would choose British Airways Executive Club as their preferred programme. However, whilst it’s easy to be annoyed by high surcharges and wobbly IT, you have to admire industry-leading innovations such as guaranteed Avios seats on every flight, the new “all Avios” flights, and 2-4-1 voucher offered on the BA Amex credit card.’

The Best UK Airport Lounge (Independent) went to the American Express Centurion Lounge (Terminal 3).

Head for Points said: ‘The first Centurion Lounge to open in Europe – accessible at Heathrow Terminal 3 to anyone with an American Express Platinum or Centurion card – is a remarkable example of what good design can do with a windowless space. A variety of seating “zones” means that there is something to suit every sort of trip and traveller.’

Read the full story originally published on dailymail.co.uk

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However, half an hour into the flight, it turned around over the Strait of Dover and came back to the UK, according to flight path data from FlightRadar24. The plane flew back to Heathrow and touched down at 8.41 am.

As soon as the plane landed, several fire engines rushed towards it.

A British Airways spokesperson blamed a ‘technical issue’ for the quick about-turn, though they did not specify what had caused the pilots to choose to return to Heathrow.

British Airways said in a statement: ”We’re sorry for the delay in our customers’ journey after the aircraft returned to Heathrow as a precaution. Our teams looked after them whilst they waited to board a replacement aircraft to continue their journey.”

The incident comes as the airline cancelled more than three dozen flights from Heathrow on Sunday, because of Storm Isha. Yesterday, A British Airways flight was unable to land due to the strong winds at Heathrow. The pilot was forced to take off again and recircle several times before it could land.

Data from FlightRadar24 revealed that several flights were forced to change their paths on Sunday.

British Airways said: “Like other airlines, we have had to make schedule adjustments due to the adverse weather conditions across the UK and Europe caused by Storm Isha. We’ve apologised to our customers for the disruption to their travel plans and our teams are working hard to get them on their way as quickly as possible.”

Read full originally published story on here

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The airline has increased the minimum connection time for connecting flights operating through Heathrow Terminal 5.

The connection time, which previously stood at 60 minutes, has increased to 75 minutes.

On the British Airways website, passengers can only book connecting services if flights are scheduled to arrive at least 75 minutes before the onward departure time.

A spokesperson for British Airways said: “Following customer feedback, we’re increasing the minimum connection time for some of our flights through Heathrow T5.

“This will give customers more time to make their next flight and reduce the risk of missing their onward service, which we know is incredibly frustrating.”

The rule change was brought into effect on January 9, 2024, in a bid to make connections at Terminal 5 less stressful, with UK passengers flying from airports like Manchester and Edinburgh most likely to be impacted.

Any passengers travelling from those airports may need to take an earlier flight before arriving at Heathrow.

While minimum connection times are set by the International Air Transport Association, individual airlines can set their own times.

Holidaymakers who need to switch between Terminals 3 and 5 will still need to have a minimum connection time of 90 minutes.

This is because passengers will need to take a 10-minute bus between the terminals.

Other top airports across Europe have shorter minimum connection times.

For example, Amsterdam Schiphol Airport has a minimum connection time of 40 minutes for flights to Schengen countries and 50 minutes for non-Schengen countries.

Meanwhile, British Airways flights are set to return to London Stansted for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic.

The flag carrier has confirmed that three new routes will depart from the London airport, with prices starting at £36 for a one-way ticket.

From London Stansted, British Airways will fly to Florence, Ibiza, and Nice.

The new flights will be operated by BA Cityflyer – a subsidiary of British Airways.

At present, BA Cityflyer already flies from London City Airport to nearly 30 short-haul destinations.

Read the full originally published story at – thesun.co.uk

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