British Airways and replace them with agency staff; it is estimated that the strike cost British Airways £30 million and caused disruption to 100,000 passengers. In October 2006, BA became involved in a civil rights dispute when a Christian employee was forbidden to wear a necklace bearing the cross, a religious symbol. BA's practice of forbidding such symbols has been publicly questioned by British politicians such as the former Home Secretary John Reid and the former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw. Relations have been turbulent between BA and Unite. In 2007, cabin crew threatened strike action over salary changes to be imposed by
British European Airways Flight 706 immediately implemented a new technique in detecting corrosion. It was later revealed that eight Vanguards of their fleets suffered the same crack as G-APEC. British European Airways Flight 706 British European Airways Flight 706 (BE706/BEA706) was a scheduled flight from Heathrow Airport in London, United Kingdom to Salzburg-W. A. Mozart Airport in Salzburg, Austria. The flight was operated by a Vickers Vanguard with a U.K registration of G-APEC. On 2 October 1971, whilst en route at , 35 minutes after takeoff, the rear cabin pressure bulkhead failed. The resulting pressurisation of the tail section caused the surfaces of the tailplanes