1 - The Black Vault

From
Di
Airspace)
Operations & Policy 1
MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
Room 6/73, Metropole Building, Northumberland Avenue, London,
WC2N 5BP
Telephone
(Direct dial)
(Switchboard)
(Fax)
(GTN)
020 7218 2140
020 7218 9000
~
Northants
...-oJ
Your Reference
Our Reference
D/DAS/64/3
Date
16 August 200 I
Dea~
Further to my letter of9 August regarding your request for information relating to the defence of
UK airspace, I am now in a position to provide a substantive reply.
I will answer your questions in the same order as your letter.
Q I) What is United Kingdom lmv governing unauthorised incursions into UK airspace? (Does
the UK have an 'air d~fence identification zone '.fbr example?).
A I) As far as I can ascertain there are no specific laws governing 'unauthorised incursions into
UK airspace' There is no requirement to notify authorities of entry into UK airspace, in a
similar way in which ships are not required to notifY their entry into territorial waters. However,
diplomatic clearance is required for military aircraft and all aircraft are required to comply with
the rules of the air. Thus, for example, any aircraft entering controlled airspace is required to seek
clearance from the appropriate control agency. Furthermore, Customs and Excise must be
notified at the point of landing.
Q2) Is it standard practice to allow such incursions to go unchallenged, provided that the
aircrqft concerned do not engage in hostile acts (including espionage or military
reconnaissance)?.
A2) Any aircraft that is considered to represent a potential threat will be challenged by air
defence aircraft.
Q3) Were the four unidentified aircrqft mentioned a hove all i?f a recognisable type or
manufacture, and !fnot, how many were not?.
A3) The four unidentified aircraft were considered friendly and, therefore, no further attempt was
made to ascertain specific details.
I hope this is helpful.
Yours sincerely,