We’ll bring down planes in no-fly zone says RAF
PILOTS who break no-fly rules over London during the Olympics risk being shot down in a show of “lethal force”, a leading RAF officer warned last night.
RAF Typhoon fighters, military helicopters with highly-trained snipers and the Royal Navy’s largest warship, HMS Ocean, were in place last night, two weeks before the opening ceremony.
The Typhoons are to deter attacks by fast jets while snipers in Puma and Lynx helicopters will tackle “low and slow” airborne threats, such as microlights or single-propeller planes which stray into the restricted zone.
The Olympics air security commander, Air Vice-Marshal Stuart Atha, said: “As a last resort, we will have lethal force as an option.”
Asked who would give the order for lethal force to be used, he replied: “The highest level of Government makes that decision.”
He was speaking at RAF Northolt in west London, where the Typhoons will be based.
Pumas carrying RAF Regiment snipers will operate from a Territorial Army base in Ilford, Essex. Royal Marine snipers will be available in Army and Royal Navy Lynxes flying from HMS Ocean anchored in the Thames at Greenwich. There are also Rapier ground-based air defence systems at four sites in and around London. The Starstreak High Velocity Missile has been placed at two sites in London, including on top of a block of flats.
The snipers will be armed with the Sharpshooter rifle and a combat shotgun. The Sharpshooter is highly accurate over a range of up to a mile and its 7.62mm bullets would target a pilot who refuses to co-operate.
The 12-gauge combat shotgun is for use at closer quarters and packs a much more powerful punch. It is particularly effective over a range of less than 100 yards and would be used to take out the engines of a suspicious plane.
The Civil Aviation Authority has sent a leaflet to all private pilots, spelling out what they must do if intercepted. The leaflet warns: “As a last resort, if an aircraft fails to comply with these procedures, or is intercepted and fails to comply with the directions of the military aircraft, it may be considered a threat to security which may result in the use of lethal force.”
The no-fly zone, which came into force last night, runs to August 15. The restrictions apply to general aviation such as light aircraft, gliders and balloons. Commercial flights overflying the zone are unaffected.