2 British Airways ground staff arrested

LONDON — Two British Airways baggage handlers will face court hearings after being arrested because the truck they were driving collided with a passenger plane at Heathrow Airport.

The damage to the British Airways jet was only discovered hours after the incident, shortly before the plane was supposed to take off with 80 passengers on board.

Metropolitan Police said in a statement Wednesday that other British Airways ground staff noticed the plane had a damaged fuselage shortly before takeoff, which was canceled.

The plane, which had been supposed to fly to Aberdeen, Scotland, was taken out of service because of the damage caused by the baggage-pulling truck.

The incident happened Friday but was not made public until Wednesday. Police and British Airways did not say where at the airport the collision occurred.

The names of the two suspects, who were freed on bail on Saturday, were not released because they have not been formally charged, police said. As is customary in Britain, they will only be named if they are charged.

One suspect, 54, will have a court hearing in February; the other, aged 49, will have a hearing in March, police said.

British Airways released a statement confirming the collision, the arrests and the damage to the plane but did not provide further details.