THE second planned “one in, one out” deportation flight has taken off without a single boat migrant on board — in another huge blow for Sir Keir Starmer.
An Air France flight from Heathrow to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris left with no asylum seekers after more last-minute challenges again blocked the start of the deportation pact.
The SunThe second planned “one in, one out” deportation flight has taken off without a single boat migrant on board[/caption]
The SunAn Air France flight from Heathrow to Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris left with no asylum seekers[/caption]
The SunThe Air France plane at Heathrow this morning[/caption]
The SunSun reporter Thomas Godfrey on the plane this morning[/caption]
It is thought that charities and lawyers frustrated the Home Office’s plan to return failed asylum seekers detained last month under a pact with Emmanuel Macron.
Several pairs of seats were left empty on the flight when Air France staff told The Sun it had been fully reserved.
Some passengers moved into the vacated seats after take-off to give themselves more room.
The 45-minute flight took off without any asylum seekers on board and with no staff from either the Border Force or Mitie, the contractor agency which runs the Harmondsworth Removal Centre.
It landed in Paris shortly after 11.30am European time.
At least one asylum seeker had been told they would be deported on this morning’s flight after they were pulled off a plane on Monday afternoon, which also went ahead without any migrants.
The man was sent a message over the weekend reading: “You will be removed from the UK on Air France Flight (AF) 1681 which departs from Heathrow Terminal 4 at 09:00 on 16/09/2025 and arrives in Paris, France at 11:20 on 16/09/2025.”
French officials were preparing to accommodate the male migrant in a hotel in Roissy-en-France, just outside the airport’s perimeter.
It is thought that several others were told they would be flown home this morning but appear to have been prevented from travelling at the last moment.
The delay is another massive blow for Sir Keir Starmer who had hoped the pilot scheme would act as a deterrent to would-be migrants crossing the channel.
The flight faced last-minute frustrations from activist groups and lawyers.
Campaigners also orchestrated a pressure offensive on Air France, the French flag carrier airline, including by ringing up and demanding to speak to flight captains.
In a letter circulated to members, leftist group Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants said: “All those being deported were detained in the UK upon arrival under the cruel ‘1 in 1 out’ scheme put in place this August between the UK and French governments.
PAAsylum seekers being put on a return flight[/caption]
“They are being threatened with deportation.
“You can insist on speaking to senior people (e.g. chief pilot, flight supervisor, anyone with power to stop the flight) out of concern for welfare of the passenger(s) on the flight and not disclose it is regarding a deportation until necessary.
“Emphasise that deportation against a person’s will is violent, abusive and oppressive.”
When the UK-France returns deal was announced in July, it was suggested that 50 migrants a week would be sent back.
However it is thought only a few dozen seats have been booked for the first set of scheduled flights this week.
Some 155 migrants were detained at the start of August with those asylum seekers now eligible to be deported to France.
They have been held at the Harmondsworth Removal Centre just ten minutes from Air France’s base in Terminal 4.
But in the same time, some 5,000 people have made the journey across the Channel.
For each asylum seeker sent back, one pre-vetted refugee with a genuine claim will enter the UK.
The scheme is supposed to act as a deterrent against migrants making risky dinghy journeys which claim dozens of lives a year.
Sources in the French government previously told The Sun they regarded the deal as “experimental” and reserved the right to “terminate it at any time.”
Some 31,000 boat migrants have been brought to Dover this year with many paying thousands of pounds to illegal gangs.
gary stoneIt is thought that charities and lawyers frustrated the Home Office’s plan to return failed asylum seekers detained last month[/caption]
AFPA file photo of migrants being picked up at sea after attempting to cross the English Channel from France[/caption]
It’s yet another blow for PM Keir StarmerCrown Copyright Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
