Specialist police to be deployed at Leeds Bradford Airport to disrupt potential criminal or terrorist acts

It is part of Project Servator, a national policing tactic which aims to disrupt a range of criminal activity.

This project is different to normal policing, as officers involved are specially-trained to spot tell-tale signs that someone may be carrying out hostile reconnaissance.

'Hostile reconnaissance' is the information gathering phase conducted by people preparing to commit a crime.

Project Servator has been ongoing in the city centre for the past three years.

It will begin deploying its resources at Leeds Bradford Airport from Friday October 22.

Assistant Chief Constable Catherine Hankinson of West Yorkshire Police, said: ‘’Project Servator has been operating in West Yorkshire since 2018.

"Throughout this period Project Servator has built close working relationships with partner agencies and businesses within Leeds and has been welcomed by the public as an effective tool in disrupting criminal activity. It is this approach that we will look to replicate at the airport.

“Leeds Bradford Airport is already a safe environment and our Project Servator deployments will enhance this by disrupting any criminal activity taking place.

“We have built close working relationships with partners and businesses at the airport, and our officers will be on hand to reassure the public and encourage them to report anything that doesn’t feel right.

“Management and everyone who works at Leeds Bradford Airport, as well as passengers and visitors, are ideally placed to be our extra eyes and ears as they will know when something is out of the ordinary.’’

Assistant Chief Constable Hankinson, added: ‘’If you encounter a Project Servator deployment, this is nothing to be concerned about, it is a normal police deployment. We encourage airport visitors to speak to our officers, who will answer any questions you may have and explain how you can play a part in keeping everyone safe.

“If something doesn’t feel right, trust your instincts and report your concerns to a police officer or member of staff. In an emergency, always call 999.”

Neil Perkis, Resilience and Emergency Planning Manager at Leeds Bradford Airport, said: “We have been working for a long time now with West Yorkshire Police to launch Project Servator here at the airport and are delighted to have reached this point just as foreign holidays are again coming back onto many people’s radars.

“Leeds Bradford Airport is of course a really safe and welcoming place, and we think these Project Servator deployments will help reassure passengers that we and the police are doing all we can to ensure their trips are safe and happy ones.

What is Project Servator?

Project Servator was developed by the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure (CPNI) and the City of London Police.

Both highly visible and plain clothed officers are deployed unpredictably, so they can turn up anywhere in and around the airport at any time.

Specialist ScAN training has also been provided to staff at the airport to provide them with the knowledge and skills to disrupt criminality.