28 Nov 2015
An investigation has been launched after Arabic graffiti was found daubed on panels covering fuel tanks of four easyJet planes in France.
Lisa King, easyJet cabin safety manager, alerted company employees to the graffiti with an email informing them of the discovery of “four aircraft in France with written inscriptions on the inside of the fuel panel, and toilet door in Arabic script“.
The airline did not give any details of the nature of the inscriptions.
However, a spokeswoman for easyJet said the matter was not considered to be a threat either by the airline or the authorities, and no passengers had to be removed from the aircraft.
She said: “EasyJet assessed this issue, each time working in full consultation with the authorities, and is entirely satisfied it is nothing more than graffiti.
“EasyJet takes very seriously any security related issue and would not operate a flight unless we are entirely satisfied it is completely safe to do so.
“EasyJet operates its fleet of aircraft in full compliance with all regulations. The safety and security of its passengers and crews is always easyJet’s highest priority.”
The graffiti was found two weeks after 130 people were killed in terror attacks in Paris.
Philip Baum, editor of Aviation Security International, told The Sun: “Graffiti in itself won’t hurt anybody. But the ability of anyone to place a prohibited item near fuel tanks is a concern, of course.”
The investigation is trying to establish who made the inscriptions.
The airports concerned cannot be identified for security reasons.
Initially the location of these aircraft and the nature of the graffiti were not disclosed. We have now learned that the aircraft were located in Paris CDG and Lyon. A Vueling aircraft also received graffiti. The graffiti said “Allah Akhbar”. It is likely that they were written elsewhere: one aircraft came from Budapest and another one from Marrakesh.