Britain Holds 18 in Airline Plot Case

British police announced that they had arrested about 18 people in and around London early this morning on suspicion of attempting to blow up planes with devices hidden in hand luggage.

The BBC reported that the plot was aimed particularly at flights from Britain to the United States.

Home Secretary John Reid was quoted as saying that the plot was designed to “bring down a number of aircraft through mid-flight explosions, causing a considerable loss of life.”

A Scotland Yard statement said the arrests were made overnight and “a major terrorist plot to allegedly blow up aircraft in mid-flight has been disrupted in a joint, pre-planned, intelligence-led operation by the Metropolitan Police anti-terrorist branch and security services.”

A massive security operation has since begun at all British airports, and a Transport Department advisory said all baggage must be carried in the hold, not in the cabin.

Passengers may not carry items even in their pockets, the department’s website said, but will be allowed to carry aboard a transparent plastic bag containing a few items, such as wallets, travel documents and spectacles.

Spectacle cases, however, must be carried in the hold.

A BBC reporter said that even items such as mobile phones and MP3 players had to be sent to the cargo hold.

Passengers were advised to expect meticulous hand searches and delays of up to five hours for all flights leaving the country. Delays could be longer for flights to the United States.

Local news reports said the arrests were carried out about 3 a.m.

On its website, Britain’s Home Office said the threat level for attacks in Britain had been raised to “critical.”

“This was a very serious and imminent threat,” BBC security correspondent Gordon Carrera told a morning news television program.

The arrested plotters, he said, “weren’t just talking about it, but had the capability and material to carry this out.”