Aviation Security Act 1982

27 Prevention of theft at designated airports

(1) Any relevant constable may in any aerodrome which is a designated airport—

(a) stop, and without warrant search and arrest, any airport employee whom he has reasonable grounds to suspect of having in his possession or of conveying in any manner anything stolen or unlawfully obtained on the aerodrome; and

(b) if he has reasonable grounds to suspect that anything stolen or unlawfully obtained on the aerodrome may be found in or on any vehicle carrying an airport employee or in or on any aircraft, stop and without warrant search and detain the vehicle or, as the case may be, board and without warrant search the aircraft.

(2) Any relevant constable may—

(a) stop any person who is leaving a cargo area in an aerodrome which is a designated airport and inspect any goods carried by that person ;

(b) stop and search any vehicle or aircraft which is leaving any such area and inspect the vehicle or aircraft and any goods carried on or in it; and

(c) detain in the area—

(i) any such goods as aforesaid for which there is not produced a document authorising their removal from the area signed by a person authorised in that behalf by the manager of the aerodrome; and

(ii) any such vehicle or aircraft as aforesaid so long as there are on or in it goods liable to detention under this paragraph.

(3) Nothing in subsection (2) above shall be construed as conferring a power to search any person.

(4) In any cargo area in an aerodrome which is a designated airport the powers of a constable under subsection (1)(b) above—

(a) extend to any vehicle whether or not it is carrying an airport employee; and

(b) include power, not only to board and search an aircraft, but also to stop and detain it.

(5) In this section " airport employee ", in relation to any aerodrome, means any person in the employment of the manager of the aerodrome and any person employed otherwise than by the manager to work on the aerodrome.

(6) In this section " cargo area " means, subject to subsection (7) below, any area which appears to the Secretary of State to be used wholly or mainly for the storage or handling of cargo in an aerodrome and is designated by an order made by him for the purposes of this section.

(7) Where an aerodrome owned or managed by the British Airports Authority becomes a designated airport at a time when an area in that aerodrome is designated for the purposes of section 12 of the [1975 c. 78.] Airports Authority Act 1975 (which makes provision corresponding to subsections (2) to (4) above) that area shall, unless the Secretary of State by order otherwise directs, be treated as a cargo area for the purposes of this section.

(8) Any power to make an order under this section shall be exercisable by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

(9) The powers conferred by this section on a relevant constable are without prejudice to any powers exercisable by him apart from this section.