The Register® — Biting the hand that feeds IT

Feeds

BAA accused of banning passengers from filming travel chaos

Airports not working? We hadn't noticed...

Ensure Ease of Recovery with Asigra’s Agentless Software

It seems that UK airport bosses are not content with keeping passengers in the dark as to when they will ever leave the ground. Angry passengers who'd rather be swilling their eggnog in foreign climes have told El Reg that British Airports Authority (BAA) staff are stopping passengers stranded at Heathrow – and other airports – from filming the ensuing chaos on their mobiles.

According to one blogger, those who refuse to comply with the information blackout are then given a choice: delete the images – or out into the snow.

But it's not just the bloggers who can't get footage. The story appears to have surfaced last night on Channel 4 News, accompanied by suggestions that BAA were trying, Canute-style, to hold back the tide of news organisations eager to film from inside their airports.

We spoke to Channel 4 News, which confirmed that reporters had been told that they could not film unless accompanied by a press officer. Since all the airport's press officers were too busy dealing with the current disruption, this meant no one was available to hold their hand, and no footage for their viewers.

Meanwhile, stories of passengers being told to put away their (camera) phones first surfaced earlier today on twitter – backed up by a report on today’s newswatch blog, a slightly obsessive daily summary of the main news stories from the UK and around the world.

We asked BAA if this was true and said they thought not. Or rather a spokeswoman did confirm that they were asking camera crews to apply through the usual channels for permits to film, but added, quite fairly, that it wouldn't be one of BAA’s priorities at this time.

As for the ban on taking pics? The same spokeswoman said there was no such thing.

It is also possible, of course, that a few "enterprising" middle managers decided on their own steam that their employer’s interests were best served by getting members of the public to delete all photographic evidence of their failings.

If any reader – perhaps attempting to depart from Heathrow at this very moment – can help us further on this story, we are all ears. ®

Cloud based data management

Know Your Place!!!

We take pictures of you. Not the other way round.

Signed,

Big Brother & Big Business

19
0

La la la, I'm not listening!

Also, what ever you do, don't make a joke about b-l-o-w-i-n-g any of them u-p.

13
0

Sure I'll delete it

Just let's stand and argue about it for a minute or two while the YouTube upload completes, first...

There. Done.

Look! Deleted!

13
1

More from The Register

 breaking news
 breaking news
NSA PRISM-gate: Relax, GCHQ spooks 'keep us safe', says Cameron
Whatever they are up to, it's all above board, we're told
 breaking news
BBC lied to Parliament about doomed £100m IT monster, thunder MPs
Axed DMI ballooned and burst while watchdogs sang Kumbaya
PRISM snitch claims NSA hacked Chinese targets since 2009
Snowden suddenly looks safer in Hong Kong after revelations
SCO vs. IBM battle resumes over ownership of Unix
Zombie lawsuit back and wants to suck the brains out of Linux
 breaking news
US chief spook: Look, we only want to spy on 6.66 BEELLLION of you
Americans assured they are not in the NSA's sights
 breaking news
Panda-peddlers cuffed for chess gambling gambit
More porridge on the menu for Chinese coders after second offence
Silicon Valley digiterati to brainstorm at 30,000 ft
Nothing spurs creative thinking like 11 hours in a flying tube