Airline Cancels 2 More Flights, Cites Security

LONDON — For the ninth time in the last two months, an airline canceled passenger flights Thursday, citing the threat of a possible terrorist attack.

British Airways announced that Flight 223 to Dulles International Airport near Washington on Sunday and Flight 263 to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Monday had been scratched on the advice of the British government. Both flights were to depart from London’s Heathrow Airport.

The cancellations were “by and large” related to information provided by the U.S. government, according to airline spokesman Steve Double, who said he had no information about the possible threat.

Customers were being rebooked on other flights, he said.

The string of cancellations began Dec. 24. Flights by Air France also have been affected in the past, but British Airways was the only airline involved in Thursday’s announcement.

Flight 223 has been canceled or delayed at least five times -- most recently Jan. 31, when U.S. officials said they had “very specific and credible threat information about Al Qaeda’s desire to target specific flights.”

The next day, a U.S. official familiar with the case said one concern was that terrorists might use chemical, biological or radiological weapons in an attack on an aircraft.

An industry source, who asked to not be identified, said Thursday’s cancellations appeared related to “chatter” picked up by intelligence agencies.

There has been speculation in British newspapers that Flight 223, one of three daily flights between London and Washington, has been targeted because its number is the same as the U.N. Security Council’s 1997 resolution calling for better treatment of Palestinians. Several flights originating from the Middle East connect to Flight 223.

Double said customers have been “pretty stoical.” He said the financial impact of the repeated cancellations on the airline would be hard to estimate, because most passengers booked other British Airways flights.

British Airways said 184 people had been booked onto the Washington flight and 149 had reservations to Riyadh.

Chris Yates, aviation security editor of Jane’s Transport magazine in London, says he believes the intelligence that has been provoking flight cancellations may not be very precise.

“There is a morass of information and intelligence out of which this number, 223, crops up, but not necessarily specific to BA or any other airline,” said Yates, who was quoted by Britain’s Press Assn. news agency. “Flights are mentioned but not specific airlines, or flights and dates are mentioned, then Washington pulls these strands together and makes up the body of information.”

The British Airline Pilots Assn. -- which opposed the imposition of sky marshals on some British Airways flights -- accused the U.S. intelligence agencies of “jumping at shadows” and “letting their imaginations run riot.”

The association’s general secretary, Jim McAuslan, called on British authorities to thoroughly investigate security information coming from the United States.

“We are not at all sure the terrorists would choose a British plane -- our security is among the best in the world,” he said in a statement. “We are not even sure that they would choose to use aviation again. We want the British government to really check out what the Americans are telling us. This jumping at shadows has to stop.”