A MAN has been arrested at Gatwick Airport carrying a live hand grenade in his luggage, anti-terrorism police have revealed.

The 37-year-old Venezuelan arrived on a British Airways flight from South America and the grenade was found when his luggage was searched.

He was held by Sussex Police and was being taken to a central London police station where he will be quizzed by anti-terrorist detectives.

Part of the airport's north terminal was evacuated during the alert.

The man arrived on flight BA 2048 from Bogota in Colombia which had made a stop in Caracas, Venezuela.

A police source said: ''A 37-year-old man was arrested under the Terrorism Act by officers from Sussex Police at the airport's north terminal.

''The man is a Venezuelan national who arrived on a BA flight from Columbia.

''On arrival at the airport the man's luggage was searched and a suspicious item was found.

''The item has been examined by explosives officers and appears to be a live grenade.''

Earlier today, two men were arrested at Heathrow Airport in London where up to 400 troops have joined police in mounting extra security patrols. Few details of the arrests have been released by police.

Meanwhile, airport authorities have confirmed that the access road to the terminal building at Stansted Airport is to be closed to the public due to increased security measures.

The road will shut tomorrow morning but officials stressed that it was a routine measure and was not as a result of a direct threat.

Essex Police has increased the number of officers at Stansted as a result of the heightened security concerns this week.