Marvin OnumonuBritish Airways has been fined over £3m after two workers were seriously injured in separate falls at Heathrow Terminal 5.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted the airline after both incidents, which happened during baggage unloading.
On 25th August 2022, a 54-year-old British Airways worker slipped off a televator and fell 1.5 metres to the ground, suffering a fractured vertebrae and head injuries.
The HSE found there were gaps between the televator’s guardrails and the aircraft, which became larger after the platforms were extended.
British Airways had started retrofitting extendable guardrails before the incident, but not all platforms had been updated.
In the second incident on 8th March 2023, a 43-year-old employee unloading baggage from a Seattle flight fell three metres from an elevator, suffering a fractured jaw and bleeding on the brain.
The investigation found gaps were left between the elevator platform and the aircraft, and the operator platform was not fully extended.
Both employees were taken to hospital and spent months off work.
British Airways plc, based at Waterside, Speedbird Way, Harmondsworth, pleaded guilty to two charges under the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
The company was fined £1.33m for the first incident, £1.875m for the second, and ordered to pay £20,935 in costs at Southwark Crown Court yesterday, 15th May 2025.
Rebecca Schwartz, enforcement lawyer at HSE, said: “Falls from height present a real risk of death or serious, life-changing injury. Both employees are fortunate to be alive today.
“The risks of working at height and the necessary control measures are well established – in these cases adequate guardrails would have significantly reduced the risk of harm.
“This was a reasonably foreseeable risk that British Airways should have been aware of and therefore it should have done more to protect its employees.”
A spokesperson from British Airways said: “Safety is always our highest priority, and we deeply regret that despite the measures we had in place, these incidents occurred.
“Having worked closely with the Health & Safety Executive, we had made changes to our procedures.
“We provided support to our colleagues during this very difficult time for them and we were incredibly pleased to welcome both back to the airline.”
