British PM May calls on BA to fix I.T. system, compensate customers

LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May called on British Airways to compensate the thousands of passengers who were left stranded over the weekend by an IT failure and to deliver the service that customers expect of the country's flagship carrier. BA was forced to cancel all flights from London's Heathrow, Europe's busiest airport, and Gatwick on Saturday after it said a power surge knocked out its computer systems, disrupting its global flight operations, call centers and website. "It's important that of course British Airways has a compensation scheme ... for people who were traveling," May told an election campaign event in central England on Tuesday. "It is up to them to sort their IT out and to ensure that they're able to provide the services that people expect them to provide as British Airways." (Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge and Alistair Smout; writing by Kate Holton; editing by Paul Sandle)