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The chaos that blighted the opening of Heathrow’s Terminal Five, which cost over four billion pounds to construct, could have been avoided, according to a report released this week by a committee of MPs. British Airways and BAA, the operator of the airport, have been heavily criticised in the report, for causing a national embarrassment.

Their “serious failings” have been detailed in a parliamentary transport committee document which was drawn up in order to explain the reasons why the opening of the new terminal proved to be such a disaster. There were numerous problems with the opening of the terminal, including a serious failure with the baggage system. Over twenty thousand bags were left stranded as a result of the inefficient system.

MPs believe that the opening of the terminal in March of this year should have been “an occasion of national pride” but instead, it became a debacle which embarrassed the entire nation.

British Airways has accepted that inadequate and insufficient training led to the problems during the first few weeks of the terminal’s operation. The airline has revealed that testing of important IT systems was unexpectedly delayed until the end of October 2007 and this affected the ability of its staff to become familiar with the systems. British Airways also stated that they should have “delayed the move” in order to ensure that staff and systems were ready for the opening.

The general consensus at the moment is that Terminal Five has put its initial problems firmly behind it. British Airways believes that the terminal now provides the “best customer experience Heathrow has known” for several years. Furthermore, the airline holds frequent meetings with BAA in order to review the airport’s performance.