Adam Ingram admits CIA flights via RAF Northolt ......

Adam Ingram, described as the armed forces minister, in a letter to Sir Menzies Campbell, has disclosed details of CIA flights through Northolt. This information was only provided when he was threatened with being reported to the parliamentary ombudsman if he continued to refuse to answer detailed questions about flights suspected of being used for "extraordinary rendition".

The shifty Scot has reluctantly disclosed that two aircraft known to have been chartered by the CIA landed 14 times at RAF Northholt, west London, and RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire between October 2003 and May 2004.

Mr Ingram did not say the aircraft were used by the CIA, he insists his disclosure was not "at odds with the foreign secretary's statements on the subject". Jack Straw has said that the government is "unaware" of any CIA flights landing in Britain or using UK airspace since 1998 and transporting terrorist suspects. ( an unawareness, or convenient amnesia, that extends to other colleagues on matters of public interest such as the saintly Tessa).

Ministers have repeatedly said that they either have no record of CIA flights since 1998, when they received four requests from the Clinton administration, or that records it might once have had had since been destroyed - plainly they were lying in their fucking teeth - as per usual.

One aircraft, a Boeing 737, was registered N313P, the other, a Gulfstream executive jet , was initially registered N379P and later as N8068V.

Flights of CIA planes through RAF Northolt confirmed by the MoD

N313P Arrived from Brize Norton at 10.15, Oct 19, 2003. Departed to Tripoli at 13.00. Arrived from Tripoli, 15.35, Oct 22. Departed to Tripoli, noon, Oct 28. Arrived from Tripoli, 17.10, Oct 29. Departed to Shannon, 17.45. Arrived from Washington, 08:50, Dec 1. Departed to Tripoli, 11:00. Arrived from Tripoli, 13:00, Dec 3. Departed to Luqa, Malta 12:00, Dec 6.

N379P Arrived from Islamabad, 15:50, Oct 18, 2002. Departed to Washington, 09:00, Oct 20. Arrived from Amman, 12:50, Jan 16, 2003. Departed to Shannon, 10:00, Jan 18 03. Arrived from Washington, 20.05, Feb 24. Departed to Glasgow, 09:00, Feb 26. Arrived from Dohaa, 12:49, Feb 28. Departed to Glasgow, 09:00, Mar 1.

N8068V Arrived from Marrakesh, 12:10, May 15 04. Departed to Luton 13:00. Arrived from Luton, 11:05, May 17. Departed to Shannon, 08:00, May 18.

Pic N8068V (owned by CIA front Premiere Executive Transport ) at Geneva April 16th 2004 (i.e one month before jetting in from Marrakesh)

Recent blogs on same topic here

FOOTNOTE

A government memo leaked to the New Statesman written Dec. 7 by Irfan Siddiq, an official in the foreign secretary`s private office, advised ministers to 'try to move the debate on' and 'avoid getting drawn down on detail," on rendition flights. (see Liberty report)

The memo warned 'The papers we have unearthed so far suggest there could be more such cases... We cannot say that we have received no such request for the use of U.K. territory.'

However, the memo also raised the point that the government was aware that rendition was rarely legal. Foreign Office lawyers had advised that the practice 'is almost certainly illegal' and any British co-operation 'would also be illegal,' it said, before going on to question whether the U.S. definition of torture was consistent with that under international law.

5 days after this internal FO memo was written Straw said at a London press briefing (Dec 12 2005), 'We know of no occasion where there have been any flights involved in rendition through or over U.K. territory nor have we any reason to believe that such flights have taken place without our knowledge.'

He's been spending too much time with Condi, Dubya's washing room asisstant - like her he's a lying fucking bitch.