'Airlines Terror Plot' Disrupted

11.18.35pm UTC (GMT +0000) Thu 10th Aug 2006

"The Government has acted properly"

A plot to blow up planes in flight from the UK to the US and commit "mass murder on an unimaginable scale" has been disrupted, Scotland Yard has said. It is thought the plan was to detonate explosive devices smuggled in hand luggage on to as many as 10 aircraft. Police have arrested 21 people in London and the West Midlands after an anti-terrorist operation lasting several months. Security at all airports in the UK has been tightened and severe delays are occurring. MI5 has raised the UK threat level to critical - the highest possible.

"The Government has acted properly in responding to what is perceived to be an immediate and serious danger. The British public, as always, has been extremely patient and supportive at this time. Security must be the primary consideration, but the Government must also be mindful of the need to achieve the earliest return to normality for the aviation industry and the economy." (Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Alistair Carmichael MP)