Security chiefs ban drones flying within 30 MILES of Donald Trump over bomb fears as they draft in 28,000 agents and commandeer school buses for barriers at inauguration
Hundreds of trucks, dumpsters and coaches will also be parked around the inauguration site to prevent Nice-style lorry attack
SECURITY chiefs have banned drones from flying within 30 MILES of Donald Trump over fears the new President will be targeted by terrorists at his inauguration.
The Federal Aviation Administration has grounded all drones within a massive radius of this afternoon's swearing in ceremony in central Washington.
Security planning for the high-profile event began in April and has involved federal, state and local agencies.
Along with about 28,000 security personnel, there will be dozens of trucks, dumpsters and buses parked to fortify the edge of the ceremony - which is expected to draw up to 900,000 people.
Security along a so-called hard vehicle perimeter, within which only official cars may operate, reflects a renewed focus on the threat posed by trucks after the ISIS attacks in Nice and Berlin.
Brian Ebert, the Secret Service special agent in charge of the £100million Washington operation, insisted: “We are well prepared and ready for this inauguration."
The majority of the security personnel are drawn from the federal government, including the Secret Service, Transportation Security Administration and Coast Guard.
Included in that group will be about 5,000 members of the National Guard from 42 states.
Security personnel will stand one foot apart from each other along the parade route.
Thousands have already taken to the street in protest at Trump ahead of his inauguration.
Trump, his wife Melania and the Obamas will all travel to the inauguration in the same car, so security will be particularly focused on that vehicle during its trip.
Additionally, tactical teams will be ready to react to bomb threats, shootings, disruptions or any other issue that might arise during the inauguration.
The Coast Guard will patrol the Potomac River, while US Customs helicopters will buzz the skyline.
In addition, Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department will supply about 2,800 officers, backed up by 3,200 officers from police agencies around the US.
The Secret Service reportedly see a bomb-laden drone as one of the biggest threats to the controversial Republican's safety today.
Despite being one of the most popular hobbies in years, a drone in the wrong hands can be deadly.
"Drones are prohibited in the airspace over Washington, D.C.," says Jeh Johnson, secretary of Homeland Security.
"This is something we have thought about, we have planned for, and there is technology to deal with it."
Secret Service director Joseph Clancy added: “We’re concerned about every possibility that’s out there. And when I say concerned, I mean we plan for every possible threat that’s out there.”
In October, an ISIS drone strapped with a bomb exploded in Mosul, Iraq, killing two Peshmerga soldiers and leaving two French soldiers wounded.
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US special forces now call these armed drones "flying IEDs," or improvised explosive devices.
The US Military's Central Command says coalition forces are seeing adversarial drones on an almost daily basis.
It's why security experts in D.C. are paying extra close attention this Friday as large crowds gather outdoors at the inauguration.
Experts admit spotting a tiny drone flying at speeds up to 100-miles-per-hour and then deploying a response from the ground is one of their greatest challenges.
Traditional radars don't work well because that old-school technology also picks up birds and planes, which can look like drones.
In 2015, a Japanese protester strapped nuclear waste to a drone and flew it undetected to the Prime Minister's home.
TRUMP SECURITY IN NUMBERS
- £100 million: the cost of inauguration security
- £30 million: the amount Washington will spend on the inauguration festivities
- £90 million: money raised by the inaugural committee to help cover security costs
- Up to 900,000: expected attendance
- 28,000: estimated number of security personnel
- At least 5,000: members of the National Guard involved in security
- 200,000: protesters expected to join the Women's March on Washington demonstration against Trump
- 7 square kilometres (more than 100 square blocks): city space blocked off to cars
- 99 groups of demonstrators, both pro and anti Trump, will be on site
"It's a real threat," says former CIA targeting officer Josh Desmond. If you look at what’s going on overseas in the Middle East, it’s a proven threat, not a theoretical one.”
The drone ban is just one of raft of security measures which will see a 'ring of steel' placed around Trump.
Forecasters are calling for an 80 per cent chance of rain today, but umbrellas will be among the many items banned for those sitting close to the stage for inauguration.
Others include fireworks, backpacks, balloons, drums, whistles, selfie sticks and, not surprisingly, GUNS.
The number of planned protests and rallies this year is far above what has been typical at recent presidential inaugurations, with some 30 permits granted in Washington for anti-Trump rallies.
A coalition calling itself DisruptJ20, after the date of the inauguration, says people participating in its actions will attempt to shut down or cause delays at security checkpoints going in to the inauguration ceremony.
"Our goals are to have to have massive protests and to shut down the inauguration if at all possible, and if not possible if we can't shut the inauguration down then make it as difficult as possible for Trump to act as if he has a mandate," organiser David Thurston told reporters.
The running order
1PM (all times GMT): Donald and Melania will attend a private service at St John’s Episcopal Church opposite the White House, a tradition started by FDR in 1933.
2.30PM: The Trumps, along with Vice- President elect Mike Pence and his wife Karen, will join Barack and Michelle Obama for coffee at the White House.
3PM: Trump and Obama will ride together the two miles to the Capitol building.
4.30PM: The ceremony begins. Mr Pence will take the oath of office first, repeating as it is read to him by Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas.
5PM: Trump will take the oath. He is now president. Like those before him, he will be expected to deliver a landmark speech.
5.30PM: The ceremony ends. The new President and Vice-President will have lunch inside the Capitol’s Sanctuary Hall.
8PM: Donald and Melania will lead a procession along Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House where they will take their seats in a viewing stand to watch more than 8,000 soldiers, floats and marching bands.
MIDNIGHT: Trump will attend three separate black-tie parties where he will dance with the First Lady.
'Obama jumbled the words'
THE swearing of the oath marks the official moment a President takes office and is read by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
The 35-word oath of office must be read exactly as it appears in the Constitution.
President Obama jumbled the words at his first inauguration and had to take it again the next day in the White House.
Presidents usually select a Bible of personal significance on which to swear.
The oath is: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”