2006 transatlantic aircraft plot

The 2006 transatlantic aircraft plot was a terrorist plan to blow up airplanes using special liquids that could look like soft drinks. These liquids were meant to be hidden on flights from the United Kingdom to the United States and Canada. The plan was found out by British Metropolitan Police who had been watching the group for a long time.

When the plot was discovered, airports around the world had to change their rules to keep everyone safe. At first, the rules were very strict, but they got a little easier over time. Even today, most airports do not let passengers bring liquids bigger than 100 ml (about a small bottle of water) onto airplanes.

Twenty-four people were arrested in London on the night of August 9, 2006. Eight of them went to trial for terrorism. After several trials, seven men were found guilty of planning to harm people, while two were found not guilty. This event showed how important airport security is and why we still have rules about carrying liquids on airplanes.

Surveillance

In Pakistan, a man from Birmingham helped connect the people involved in the plan to important leaders of a group. When one man returned from Pakistan in June 2006, police checked his bags and found a powdered soft drink—Tang—and many batteries, which made them suspicious. Over the next few weeks, police watched very closely, using many extra officers.

Another man from High Wycombe was seen buying things that didn’t match his usual habits. Officers saw him throwing away empty bottles of a certain cleaning liquid at a recycling place. They also saw him meeting with the first man in a park in east London. When officers looked inside a flat being used by one of the men, they found items that looked like they could be used to make dangerous devices. They put a camera and listening device there and later saw two men making items out of drink bottles. Officers also watched one of the men spend a long time looking up flight times in an Internet cafe.

Arrests

On August 9, 2006, British police arrested 24 people for questioning in London, Birmingham, and High Wycombe. The arrests happened overnight. The main suspects were British-born Muslims, some of Pakistani descent, and three were new converts to Islam.

Eight of these suspects were later charged with planning to cause harm and carry out terrorist acts. Three others were charged with not telling authorities about possible terrorist plans, and one young person was charged with having items connected to terrorism. The rest were let go without any charges.

Police had been watching the group for many months. They decided to act urgently on the night of August 9 to stop any possible attack. An undercover officer had joined the group. Some reports said the planners got a message to act, but British officials said this was not clear. It was also reported that the plans were not as far along as first thought.

The police searched many places and found possible items used to make bombs, along with lots of computers, mobile telephones, and storage devices like Memory Sticks, CDs, and DVDs. They took away a huge amount of data from the computers to examine later. They also found a list of flights from American Airlines, United Airlines, and Air Canada on a device belonging to one of the suspects.

Terrorist plot

The people involved in this plan wanted to use special liquid explosives that could be hidden in soft drink bottles. They thought they could mix these liquids on the airplane to make a big explosion. The plan was to hide the needed items in drinks like Oasis and Lucozade, and even use items like AA batteries and disposable cameras to help set off the explosion.

The suspects talked about targeting many flights leaving from London Heathrow Airport to places in the United States and Canada, including cities like San Francisco, Chicago, New York City, and airports in Toronto and Montreal.

Main article: 21 July 2005 London bombings

Flights targeted

Responsibility

Some people thought a large group might have been behind this plan. In videos, the suspects talked about wanting to hurt countries like the United States and the United Kingdom as a way to get revenge.

Alleged Pakistani involvement

Reports said that some of the people involved might have gotten money from groups that were supposed to help earthquake victims. Investigations looked into possible connections with militant groups in Pakistan. One man was questioned in Pakistan but later faced lesser charges, and the main terrorism charges were dropped because there wasn’t enough evidence.

Public announcement

On August 10, 2006, British officials announced they had stopped a big plan to hurt airplanes flying from the United Kingdom to the United States and Canada. The people behind the plan wanted to bring hidden explosives onto the planes in small bags. Flights from London to many cities in the United States and to Montreal and Toronto in Canada were said to be targets.

Leaders from both the United Kingdom and the United States talked about the news. They said many airplanes were targeted, but the exact number was not clear. The plan was stopped before it could happen, and airports made new safety rules to keep everyone safe.

Responses

Prime Minister Tony Blair was on holiday but stayed in touch with officials about the events. He kept President George W. Bush informed overnight.

Britain's Deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, praised the calm and patient response of the British public and thanked security services, police, and aviation staff for their hard work. He especially recognized the efforts of Home Secretary John Reid and Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander.

Security repercussions

Main article: Security repercussions due to the 2006 transatlantic aircraft plot

After the discovery of a dangerous plan to harm flights, airports around the world had to change their rules to keep everyone safe. At first, people could not bring any drinks or liquids on planes, except for things like baby milk. Airports in the United States also added extra checks at the gates to make sure no one brought forbidden items onto planes.

Even today, many airports still do not allow people to bring bottles of liquid bigger than 100 mL (about 3.4 US fluid ounces) in their carry-on bags. But as new scanning machines are put in airports, these rules are starting to change in some places.

In the United Kingdom, the warning level about possible attacks was raised very high right after the plan was found. At first, people could only bring very small bags with just important things like tickets and money. Slowly, rules started to relax a little bit over the next few months.

In the United States, rules were also very strict. People could not bring any drinks or gels on planes, except for things like baby food or medicine for the person traveling. The security level was set very high for flights coming from the United Kingdom. Later, people were allowed to bring small amounts of medicine, baby food, and some other items, but all liquids had to be in a special small bag. People also had to take off their shoes so they could be checked before getting on the plane.

Effects

Main article: Security repercussions due to the 2006 transatlantic aircraft plot

Because of the alerts, around 400,000 passengers faced changes to their travel plans. On the first day alone, delays cost airlines over £175 million, and many bags were lost at Heathrow Airport.

Flights to and from London Heathrow Airport were stopped on the day of the arrests, except for planes already in the air. Passengers could only bring their boarding passes and passports, leaving all other items in checked luggage. As the situation improved, some flights began taking off again, but with fewer passengers and longer lines for security checks. Over the next few days, many flights were cancelled to help manage the crowds and security needs. Some airlines and airport operators disagreed about how to handle the extra security, and there were calls for faster checks to avoid more problems. The extra security and changes in travel plans cost airlines and airports a lot of money, and some people chose other ways to travel instead of flying.

Trials and sentencing

In 2008, eight men were tried for their roles in a plan to cause trouble on flights. They said they only wanted to make a political statement and not hurt anyone.

In 2009, four of the men were found guilty and given long sentences in prison. Another man was found guilty of having a gun but was not found guilty of any terrorism activities. In a later trial in 2010, three more men were found guilty and also given long sentences.