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Pilot Arrested With Knives At Heathrow

Pilot Arrested With Knives At Heathrow

A pilot who was due to fly more than 250 passengers from London to Hong Kong has been arrested for allegedly carrying a knife.

The pilot with Cathay Pacific, who is thought to be 61, was held around an hour before his Boeing 777 was due to take off from Heathrow on Saturday evening.

The arrest saw the flight delayed until the following day as no relief crew was available.

The pilot was taken to a local police station and was later bailed until next month.

The incident came less than four weeks after Germanwings pilot Andreas Lubitz is believed to have deliberately crashed an Airbus A320 into the French Alps - killing 150 people.

A Met Police spokesman said: "On Saturday at around 9.10pm police at Heathrow Airport were called to a staff search area after a search of a member of flight crew, for a flight later that night, found them in possession of some knives.

"Officers attended and subsequently the member of flight crew, a man, was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon in a public place and possession of a knife blade/sharp-pointed article in a public place.

"He was taken into custody at a local police station where he was later bailed to return to in mid-May pending further inquiries.

"The CID at Heathrow Airport is investigating."

A Cathay Pacific spokeswoman said: "We will continue to co-operate with the authorities throughout the investigation.

"We apologise for the delay and inconvenience caused to the 262 passengers booked on CX254. The airline assisted passengers with overnight accommodation and alternative flight arrangements.

"CX254 later departed Heathrow at 2.47pm yesterday and arrived in Hong Kong this morning at 9.31am local time.

"The incident happened on the ground. As the incident is subject to police investigation, we are unable to provide further information."