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Hero pilot quits amid 'whispering campaign'

British Airways pilot Peter Burkill, who avoided the worst disaster in Heathrow’s history, quits after his colleagues alleged that he 'froze' before the emergency landing

by: John Dunne

5 August 2009

THE PILOT whose number two averted the worst disaster in Heathrow’s history has quit his job at British Airways after a "whispering campaign" against him.

Peter Burkill praised his first officer John Coward after he glided a packed Boeing 777 on to the end of one of the airport’s runways following a power failure as it came in to land.

Coward fought with controls and cleared the airport perimeter fence by just 7ft – narrowly missing homes, a school and a petrol station as the plane fell without power at more than 100mph.

"Peter has been the victim of a whispering campaign. They were saying he chickened out. That was rubbish - he handled it brilliantly"

Burkill and his crew were awarded the BA Safety Medal for bravery on the Beijing to London flight in January last year. There were 151 people on board.

But Burkill – nicknamed "Peter Perfect" because of his skills – is leaving the carrier after claiming that training centre managers allegedly told their pupils he "froze" before landing. The pilots’ union Balpa failed to find any evidence to back up his claim.

But father-of-three Burkill, of Worcester, who was with BA for 20 years, was so angry he has taken redundancy.

A BA spokeswoman said: "Captain Burkill will continue to receive the full support of British Airways. The company has publically supported and praised the actions of the crew of BA