Press lets fly at British Airways

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The papers let fly at British Airways after it was fined almost £270 million for price fixing for colluding over fuel surcharges with Virgin Atlantic.

The Sun welcomes the fine imposed on BA and says Virgin Atlantic hardly emerged smelling of roses.

"They had one aim in mind," says the paper. "Ripping off the public."

The Guardian says the affair has cast a shadow over BA's good name and says the company is facing a battle to restore its reputation among passengers.

'Pay up'

The Daily Express rejects claims by BA's chief executive Willie Walsh that passengers were not overcharged in the fuel charge conspiracy.

"Pay up" it says, and "regain at least a little of BA's credibility."

The beleaguered airline comes in for more harsh words in the Daily Telegraph but not over the fine.

It says a new report shows that BA is the worst performing of all Europe's major airlines and is forecast to lose a record 1.3 million bags this year.

'Criminalisation'

"No escaping Big Brother" is the headline in the Daily Mail.

It reports that drivers stopped for speeding or people dropping litter could soon be placed on the DNA database for life.

However, the Times says the Association of Chief Police Officers is among those warning of the dangers of such a move.

One deputy chief constable, Alex Marshall, says it could be seen as a sign of the "increasing criminalisation of the generally law-abiding citizen".

Value for money

The Times leads on a report suggesting thousands of arthritis sufferers will be denied a drug with proven benefits.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence will apparently advise that the drug does not represent good value for money.

Meanwhile, a child's drawing fills most of the front page of the Independent.

The picture is the work of a young boy in Darfur and shows women and children fleeing burning houses under a sky filled with helicopters.