Bob Diamond ‘landed David Cameron’s plane’

Barclays boss Bob Diamond, who told MPs that it was time for banks to stop apologising for the financial crisis, may have to start saying sorry again after it was claimed he landed an aeroplane carrying the prime minister David Cameron.

Diamond and Cameron were among a group of business leaders and politicians travelling back to London yesterday from the PM's trip to Africa.

The Daily Mail reports that after the plane, a chartered Virgin Atlantic jet, landed at Heathrow airport, a member of the cabin crew announced that "Captain Bob Diamond" had performed an "exemplary landing".

The Barclays CEO also told passengers he had performed the take-off from Lagos airport in Nigeria.

Barclays and Virgin have both denied that Diamond, who has no pilot's licence, was actually at the controls of the plane, but admitted that he was in the cockpit, sitting in a fold-down 'jump seat' behind the pilots.

Barclays said Diamond had been joking: "Bob has a fantastic sense of humour. He was sat in the jump seat. Other people were invited to do the same during the flight."

The explanation may not be good enough, however. Anti-terror laws now forbid any passenger to enter the cockpit of a commercial plane.

The Department of Transport promised to review the incident, saying: "Passengers are not permitted in the cockpit while the engines are running. The rules apply to all UK-registered planes and to any plane operating in UK airspace. Clearly we will investigate details of the alleged incident." ·