04/03/00 - Hijacking reveals incompetence: Chris writes to The Birmingham Post

Sir, - The Stansted hijack saga has revealed yet again the incompetence of the Home Secretary, Jack Straw, and revealed a catalogue of failures at the Home Office.

Firstly, the hijacked Ariana Airlines Boeing 727 was allowed to land and subsequently hold up passenger services at Stansted, a busy commercial airport, instead of being ordered to land at a military base such as nearby RAF Brize Norton where the situation could have been contained without mass disruption to airline services.

Then the Home Office chartered a foreign registered Tri-Star to return some of the passengers to Afghanistan.

The Tri-Star was flown to Stansted at huge cost to the taxpayer and then sat on the Tarmac, each passing day adding to the total cost.

Logic and commercial realism clearly deserted the Home Office. The Afghans arrived on a 727, a mid-sized jet, yet a large, 350-plus seat Tri-Star was chartered.

Are the Home Office planning to give each passenger two seats on their return journey?

Did it not occur to the Home Office that the Ministry of Defence could provide a plane already owned by the taxpayer - such as a BAC1-11?

It is time Tony Blair sacked Jack Straw for such bungling and gross misuse of public funds.

CHRIS D KELLY
Prospective Conservative Candidate,
St Peters, Wolverhampton.