First Heathrow passengers have 'naked' body scans

Airline passengers will not be allowed to fly if they refuse to go through a full-body search scanner.

The airport is introducing the measures following the failed plane bombing over Detroit on Christmas Day, and after Britain's terror threat level was raised last week from "substantial" to "severe", meaning an attack was
considered "highly likely".

Lord Adonis, the Transport Secretary, said a small proportion of passengers would be selected for scanning.

In a written statement to the House of Commons, he said: "If a passenger is selected for scanning, and declines, they will not be permitted to fly. Given the current security threat level, the Government believes it essential to start introducing scanners immediately."

The scanners will also be introduced in Manchester, and Lord Adonis outlined plans to use them at every airport. He told Parliament: "These scanners are designed to give airport security staff a much better chance of detecting explosives or other potentially harmful items hidden on a passenger's body."

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has warned that the scanners breach privacy rules under the Human Rights Act for their naked images. The exemption of under 18s from being scanned, which was in place during the trial of the machines in Manchester, has also been removed.

Today the Department for Transport published an interim code of practice for the scanners. The officer operating the machine never sees the image, and the employee viewing the scan must be in another room. The scan cannot be saved, printed or transmitted. Passengers can also demand that only officers of their sex see their image.

BAA, which runs Heathrow, refused to comment on how many scanners are in place and in which terminals they will be used, although it is believed they will be in Terminal 4.

Images that highlight danger

The £100,000 full body scanners produce "naked" images of passengers.

They work by beaming electro-magnetic waves on to passengers while they stand in a booth. A virtual three-dimensional image is then created from the reflected energy.

However, fears have been raised that the scanners will not detect al Qaeda "body bombers", who have explosives surgically inserted inside them.

MI5 has uncovered evidence that the terrorist network is planning to use this method for the first time. It is believed that male bombers would have the explosives secreted near their appendix or in their buttocks, while females would have the material placed inside their breasts in the same way as figure-enhancing implants.