Heathrow Airport Prepares for Olympics 2012 Baggage Challenge

Travel Business Review - 15 August 2011 Heathrow, London's largest airport, is already preparing for the major logistical challenge of handling the massive throughput of athletes' baggage when London hosts the Olympics next summer.

Plans include setting up a temporary terminal and sending athletes' baggage by courier jets, as airport bosses attempt to minimise their liability to the unprecedented baggage-handling bill, which could run into millions of pounds. Heathrow is expecting 50,000 athletes, officials and sponsors to pass through during the games, and while a normal passenger travels with an average of 1.5 bags, athletes typically travel with 5. A spokesman for BAA, the airport's owner, said, 'That will obviously put different pressure on the baggage system, so we're looking at various solutions to deliver luggage in a different way. The option of using a freight company like UPS to fly bags directly from the Olympic village to athletes' destination points is likely to form part of our final solution.' [Editorial queries for this story should be sent to [email protected] ]