Airport operator BAA has announced that it will challenge the Competition Commission's (CC) ruling that insists it must sell Gatwick and Stansted airports, as well as either Glasgow or Edinburgh airport.

The Spanish-owned company has appealed to the Competition Appeal Tribunal after it claimed that the commission's report was biased due to links between a panel member and one of the parties interested in acquiring the airports that BAA is required to sell. BAA is also appealing the ruling on the grounds that the CC had failed to take into consideration the financial implications of introducing increased competition during a time of recession.