Heathrow protesters to barricade homes

Anti-aviation activists will help residents around Heathrow airport barricade their homes and resist compulsory purchase orders to block construction of a third runway.

Campaigners believe the sight of the British Airports Authority and the police evicting people could help halt the airport's expansion.

BAA is to start buying 700 properties under threat from the third runway, which has government backing but is opposed by the Tories and Lib-Dems.

BAA said this would "reduce the uncertainty faced by residents wishing to sell their property".

In response protesters from groups including Plane Stupid have escalated a campaign to "adopt" residents and are persuading them to barricade their homes. The move echoes the Nineties M11 link road protests in east London, where campaigners took over homes and used sit-ins, site invasions and sabotage to delay the project.

One source said: "We will barricade houses; erect defences so it will be hard to evict us. People are already opposed to a third runway; seeing old ladies being frogmarched from their homes by police and BAA isn't going to look good on the teatime news is it?"

Another added: "We are equipping residents with legal and physical skills to hold out against the bulldozers and bully-boys."