Major airports to get armoured vehicles to stop ‘lone wolves’
NEW DELHI: The Delhi airport is this month expected to get six bullet-resistant vehicles (BRVS) equipped with latest weapons to prevent any possible “lone wolf attacks”, according to an official with the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) that provides security to the country’s 61 airports.
The killing of over 20 passengers in an attack on the Brussels airport in March 2016 had highlighted the vulnerability of airports to lone wolf attacks, which refer to assaults terrorists carry out on their own.
Many lone wolf attackers have been of late found to have been self-radicalised over the internet.
The Islamic State (IS) has inspired many such attacks in the West and in places like Bangladesh since 2014.
The CISF official underlined the pattern of terrorist attacks has changed the world over.
“Lone-wolf attacks are now the latest trend and not hijacking. You cannot minimise the damage if you do not have bulletproof vehicles,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
The official said a BRV will help them neutralise a suspect without exposing their personnel to any danger.
The Bureau for Civil Aviation Security had issued a notification in August 2017, asking airport operators to replace the existing vehicles the Quick Reaction Teams (QRTS), which are meant to deal with possible attacks at airports with BRVS.