Branson flies in aid to Iraq

Sir Richard Branson, chief executive of Virgin Atlantic Airways, arrived at Basra yesterday with 60 tonnes of medical supplies on one of his 747s - the first commercial airliner to land in Iraq since the war.

The aircraft, piloted by an Iraqi exile who works for Virgin Atlantic, was also believed to be the first such plane to land since international sanctions were imposed 12 years ago.

The equipment included incubators, defibrillators and drugs for tuberculosis, blood pressure and heart disease, for hospitals in Basra and the southern region.