A surface-to-air missile on top of a tower block in Waltham Forest, East London
A senior UK Army officer has warned that unmanned aircraft carrying deadly poison could be used in a devastating terrorist attack during the Olympic Games.
Lieutenant Colonel Brian Fahy delivered the grim warning at a meeting intended to allay the fears of residents worried about the Army’s plans to place missiles on the rooftops of flats.
He said it was ‘feasible’ that remote-controlled aircraft filled with poison and small enough to fit into a backpack could be used as a biological weapon in the capital.
Lieut Col Fahy – the officer responsible for community relations during the Games – made his remarks on Friday in Leytonstone, East London, near one of six sites which could see the deployment of surface-to-air missile batteries in order to shoot down aircraft attempting to infiltrate an Olympic ‘no fly’ zone.
During the meeting at Buxton School, his team showed locals a ‘dummy’ missile battery and allowed children to play on the unarmed weapon.
Royal Artillery Bombardier Johnathan demonstrates a High Velocity multiple surface rot air missile system to local residents at Buxton school in Leytonstone
Lieut Col Fahy declined to elaborate on what type of poison might be used during an aerial attack. He said: ‘For the duration of the Olympics anyone flying into controlled airspace is to file their flight plan with the Civil Aviation Authority.
‘The range of threats varies in size and capability. It could be a commercial airliner hijacked by somebody with malicious intentions or a protest group using a micro light to get their name in the papers.’
His poison warning came as it was revealed that SAS troops have had anthrax emergency training at the Government’s top-secret military research establishment at Porton Down, Wiltshire. Sources say the elite soldiers wore biochemical protection suits, gloves and masks during exercises over the past few months to prepare for any attack using the deadly bacteria. Such an incident could threaten the lives of thousands of people attending the Games this summer.
Lieut Col Fahy told The Mail on Sunday: ‘We have worked up a comprehensive plan to protect against the potential hijacking of a commercial airliner down to slow-moving microlights or radio-controlled planes.’ Asked if they would fire a missile at a protester flying a micro light near the Olympic site, Lieut Col Fahy said: ‘We would not take it out. For something like that we would scramble helicopters to go and look at it.
‘There will be an RAF sniper on board if there was serious evidence to suggest something like that represented a threat. That information gets passed on and it’s a political decision to engage. ‘It’s the same politicians who will decide whether we fire surface-to-air missiles at a potential threat. It’s a decision that I’m quite happy not to make. It will weigh very heavily.’
Defence Secretary Philip Hammond has made it clear he is ready to give the order to shoot down any aircraft threatening the Olympics with a 9/11-style attack.
Lieut Col Fahy also revealed that armed police would guard any missile sites being used in case any attempts were made to steal them or protest against their deployment.
He added: ‘What we are doing is unusual. Londoners are not used to seeing a lot of soldiers around. Some people feel uncomfortable about the missiles but the vast majority, I think, appreciate we are doing this.’
HMS Ocean, one of the UK’s biggest warships, is based in the Thames, with the capability to fire a hail of missiles at a terrorist aircraft.
The awesome array of military hardware ready to thwart an attack includes four RAF Typhoon jets, three Royal Navy Sea King and two RAF Puma helicopters.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said last night: ‘We are prepared for any eventuality.’
Source: The Daily Mail