Revenue and Customs spokesman at Heathrow Bob Gaiger told the Times of South last night that: “The cocaine confiscated has an estimated street value of £250,000 (R3.5-million). Crew members are subject to the same customs checks as any other person when entering the UK.

‘‘Those arrested are being held in custody and will be interviewed by [customs] investigation officers,” Gaiger said.

Last month the British authorities questioned another SAA crew at the same airport after large amounts of drugs were found in the luggage aboard a plane at London’s Heathrow airport.

At the time customs authorities at the airport said 50 kilograms of cannabis, estimated to be worth 150,000 pounds (208,000 dollars), and four kilograms of cocaine worth 160,000 pounds were found in baggage.

In that incident, all 15 crew were held for questioning at Heathrow and released on a warning. Two people, one an SAA air hostess, were later arrested at the airline’s headquarters in Kempton Park, east of Johannesburg.

Yesterday, SAA spokeswoman Robyn Chalmers said the 15 crew members — three cockpits and 12 cabin crew — were detained after the “contraband” was found at Heathrow on the crew bus.

“Following this incident, the airline is again co-operating fully with the British authorities in an investigation that is currently under way,” Chalmers said.

‘‘An investigation in Johannesburg, involving SAA Aviation Security and the police crime intelligence unit, is also under way to establish how security procedures were breached.”

Chalmers said that after the January 21 incident SAA had co-operated closely with the UK and South African authorities and this resulted in the “speedy arrest” of an SAA crew member and of a security officer employed by the company contracted by SAA to screen crew members’ luggage.

She added: “Following these arrests, SAA tightened security measures, including changing security systems, physical searches of bags and using dogs ‘airside’.”

Peter Gastrow, a senior researcher at the Institute for Security Studies, has blamed the SAA accusing it of not being strict and an embarrassment to the country.

“It is the national flag carrier and (this incident) impacts on the whole image of the country. It is an acute embarrassment.

‘‘The risk is low enough for (drug smugglers) to take a chance.

“They are using the same route because, in their assessment, SAA remains a low-risk option of being caught so, despite the recent events, the risk is still obviously very low,” he said.