John Coles Inquest — Heathrow Airport
Airport safety failures exposed after worker death
David Standard managed the media around the conclusion of the inquest into the death of John David Coles, a British Airways employee who died on 14 February 2018 at Heathrow Terminal 5.
Case Detail
John was driving a British Airways Renault Kangoo across an uncontrolled crossing of Taxiway C when a Heathrow Airport Ltd vehicle, travelling at more than 40 mph, struck his vehicle on the passenger side, causing fatal injuries. The driver of the Heathrow vehicle had not seen him on the crossing.
The inquest, which ran to five years after John's death before concluding in July 2023, heard evidence that background visual interference — the phenomenon by which a vehicle becomes effectively invisible against a busy visual backdrop — had been an influencing factor in the collision.
David coordinated media relations around the verdict, securing BBC coverage that brought the family's story and the systemic safety concerns at one of the world's busiest airports to a national audience.
The Coroner, Richard Furniss, issued a Prevention of Future Deaths report to Heathrow Airport Ltd, calling on the airport to address the risks posed by background visual interference and to consider whether side-profile lighting on vehicles crossing uncontrolled taxiway crossings could help prevent future tragedies.
Outcome
Prevention of Future Deaths report issued to Heathrow Airport Ltd. National media coverage secured highlighting systemic safety failures at Heathrow.
This is one of six case studies from David Standard's PR Portfolio. These represent a small selection of the hundreds of cases managed over a 30-year career.