London airport not ready for 2012 Olympics

LONDON, Sept. 2 (UPI) -- A major overhaul of London's Heathrow Airport Terminals 1 and 2 will not be finished in time for the 2012 Olympics, said terminal operator BAA Ltd.

BAA, formerly the British Airports Authority, said it hoped the two terminals, to be rebuilt as "Terminal East," will be partly complete by 2012, The Daily Telegraph reported.

Construction delays are part of the fallout of the chaotic opening of Terminal 5 earlier this year. BAA said it was pushing ahead with plans to add a second building to Terminal 5, two years ahead of schedule, the Telegraph reported.

Opposition party officials were critical of the airport operator.

"The performance of Heathrow will play a major part in determining whether the 2012 Olympics are a success or not and we need a much higher quality of customer service from BAA than we have had over recent months." said Theresa Villiers, the Tories' transport spokeswoman.

BAA is also facing an anti-monopoly ruling from the Competition Commission, which said last month the company should sell Stansted and Gatwick Airports.