Theresa May could have been blasted out of the sky by ISIS fanatics on trip to Turkey after her flights were left visible on a website tracker
Prime Minister's 'May Force One' jet was tracked landing in Ankara last week - scene of several recent terror attacks
THERESA May could have been shot out of the sky by ISIS fanatics tracking her plane’s movements on an app.
A security lapse means the exact location of the PM’s plane, nicknamed May Force One, was broadcast when it was in the air.
This effectively left the jet vulnerable to a surface-to-air missile attack while flying over Turkey – where some 400 ISIS fanatics were arrested today.
Experts fear the Prime Minister was a “flying target” when she landed in Ankara, Turkey last week — scene of repeated terror attacks, the reports.
There have been calls for the RAF Voyager’s transponder, a device that sends out the plane’s location.
Chris Phillips, the former head of the National Counter Terrorism Security Office, told the site: “This is perfect information for a would-be terrorist.
“They should have turned off the tracker on the plane. It is ridiculous and irresponsible that this information is publicly available.”
The aircraft is used to take senior ministers and Royals to overseas engagements after it was commandeered by Downing Street and refitted at a cost of £10million.
Military or diplomatic jets usually do not appear on flight tracking apps or websites, which are commonly used by plane spotters.
But Theresa May’s flight from her hand-in-hand meeting with Donald Trump to Ankara in Turkey last week was shown on the Flightradar24 website and its app.
Information about the flight’s travel speed, height and direction were all put online
Every moment of its landing in the Turkish capital was broadcast live on an interactive map.
The Foreign Office has warned of a “heightened risk of terrorist attack against the aviation industry in Turkey” after a series of attacks.
Professor Anthony Glees, head of the University of Buckingham’s Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies, said: “This is beyond absurd – it is extremely dangerous.”
No 10 declined to comment.
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