The chief executive of British Airways admitted today that he had considered delaying the opening of Heathrow’s Terminal 5, and that staff training in the run-up to its first day had not been good enough.

Willie Walsh was speaking in front of the Government’s Transport Committee about the disastrous opening of the new terminal which forced the company to cancel 430 flights. BA also lost 20,000 bags and saw passenger numbers fall by 220,000 in April.

Mr Walsh said: “We believed that, while there were known risks, the opening would be successful.”

However, he admitted that in hindsight the company had “compromised” on testing of baggage systems, adding: “We didn’t supply staff with sufficient training and familiarisation. If we did it again, we would do things differently.”

He said: “The training programme was not sufficient. The environment was a building which was not fully complete - a building different from that entered on day one.”

Mr Walsh was joined in front of the Transport Committee by Sir Nigel Rudd, BA’s chairman, and Colin Matthews, chief executive at BAA, owner of Heathrow.

Sir Nigel said: “I am bitterly disappointed about the opening of T5.

“My view of the matter was that there were a number of problems that might have been foreseen but none that would have led to a postponement of the terminal.”

However, Mr Matthews admitted: “With the benefit of hindsight, there were aspects that were not ready.”

The troubled launch has already cost two BA directors their jobs — Gareth Kirkwood, the director of operations, and David Noyes, the director of customer services, left the company after a combined 45 years at the group.

Just days before their departure, Willie Walsh, the chief executive oft BA, appeared to be backing Mr Kirkwood and Mr Noyes over the debacle. He said: "If people want to assign blame for this it comes to me."

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