I would like to respond to your article 'Worry at security staff cuts' (The Argus, June 4) which incorrectly suggested that Gatwick was reducing the number of security staff working at the airport.

BAA is actually increasing the security workforce at Gatwick and has recruited a further 135 frontline security guards this year alone, bringing the total number of BAA security staff at the airport to more than a thousand.

The whole security process is complex and multi-layered and we work closely with our business partners and relevant authorities to maintain the highest levels of security and measures are continually refined and strengthened to the appropriate threat level.

Armed police officers patrolling the terminals have become a regular and continuous feature at the airport for many years and are an important part of the whole security process.

However, these officers perform a different function from the community support officers, some of whom have been re-deployed in the county, as you outlined in your report.

Finally, I would like to reassure readers who are flying out of Gatwick this summer that safety and security remain our top priority.

-Roger Cato, Managing director, BAA Gatwick