THE SUNDAY TIMES: NEWS

Soldiers pull out of Kosovo to deal with millennium bug chaos

by Hugh McManners Defence Correspondent

THE SAS and other special services are to deal with outbreaks of civil disorder and the collapse of utilities under secret plans being drawn up by the armed forces to cope with the millennium bug.

The plans, codenamed Operation Surety, will see the special forces and other armed troops deployed to protect not only key government sites but also civilian installations such as banks, airports and power stations if their security systems fail.

The extent of the military's role has been disclosed as the armed services prepare for the critical date of September 9, or 9/9/99, when the scale of the computer chaos could become apparent.

Half the combat troops are to be withdrawn from Kosovo by the end of August, a total of up to 2,000 soldiers.

A Ministry of Defence (MoD) source said Operation Surety, drawn up over 18 months by a small team of specialists at the Permanent Joint Headquarters in Northwood,

Middlesex, had been given the highest military priority after active operations in Kosovo.

"The operation is designed to ensure that essential government and civilian functions can continue between September and February next year, which is the period of danger. It's a real threat and highly classified," said the source.

Soldiers would also support the emergency services in handling disruption and accidents caused by the failure of electricity, water supplies or telephones through the inability of many computer systems to cope with the date change from 1999 to 2000.

Planners fear that computer failures could leave installations vulnerable to criminal or terrorist attack. Armed troops, some with light tanks and heavy weapons, will be deployed to guard likely targets such as airports. In the worst scenario, some form of martial law might be necessary in localised areas.

Eight leading financial institutions have asked the MoD for protection. Individual chief constables will call for military back-up if security system failures lead to looting and civil disorder.

The army will provide transport, communications, medical help and food supplies, as well as armed security. Fifty military postmen will ensure that government mail gets through. Army motorcycle dispatch riders will deliver secret government documents by hand if electronic transmissions are disrupted.

The Royal Navy will concentrate on the English Channel which has the highest density of shipping in the world. The Royal Marines' counter-terrorist unit based at Arbroath and the Special Boat Squadron will be on stand-by to board ships in trouble.

Military sources say the plan will also take troops overseas. "Even if everything goes well in the UK, a number of foreign governments are not taking the millennium bug seriously. Some Muslim countries believe it is purely a 'Christian' problem."

RAF air traffic control teams will be ready to fly to any destination where the millennium bug threatens air routes. The Paras and Royal Marines will be ready to rescue British nationals caught in chaos abroad.

A decision on whether leave for the armed services should be cancelled over the millennium will be taken after September, when the extent of the problem could emerge.

The military has been testing its new communications systems over the past two weeks. Problems have been discovered and senior officers say they may have to rely on older radio technology.

"For the time being we've gone back to simple and very old-fashioned procedures that we know will at least work," said one officer. The military also plans to test all its weapons and electronic systems after January 1 so that no hidden glitches threaten Britain's security.

Next page: Big Bang machine could destroy Earth

-- (Hallyx@aol.com), July 19, 1999

Answers

Baaahhhhh Humbug !!

-- justme (justme@justme.net), July 19, 1999.

Link please?

-- Anonymous99 (Anonymous99@Anonymous99.xxx), July 19, 1999.

Soldiers pull out of Kosovo to deal with millennium bug chaos

-- Link Boy (-@-.-), July 19, 1999.

Try again:

Soldiers pull out of Kosovo to deal with millennium bug chaos

-- Link Boy (-@-.-), July 19, 1999.

Those darn Brits with their Doomer mentality, blowing this whole hoax out of proportion. Don't they realize they could start some form of panic with their open admission of potential catastrophic scenerios?

Just remember England.....cpr is takin' names and numbers. You'll be hearin' from the FBI and de Jager any day now. Our Emperor will be contacting your Queen about this (tell her to avoid the coffee room off of the oval office at all costs, and to turn down any offers of cigars by him)

-- Will continue (farming@home.com), July 19, 1999.

Yeah right - and the next article in this "tabloid" is:

"Big Bang machine could destroy Earth "

http://www.sunday- times.co.uk/news/pages/sti/99/07/18/stinwenws02029.html?999

I am sure that if we went far enough into this site we would find rumors of Lady Di still being alive as she was just seen walking with Elvis on the beach in Morocco.

Doomers - geeze

-- (a@aaaa.hole), July 19, 1999.

Militaries all over the world will begin taking their contingency plans more seriously as the Great Unknown looms closer.

Ppl & .gov .mil .biz would be mistaken to assume that no problems 9/9/99 means no problems 1/1/2000 and 1st Q.

Time Will Tell
Better to be Ready, Prepared, Alert

xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx

-- Ashton & Leska in Cascadia (allaha@earthlink.net), July 19, 1999.

Reported problems will probably be few or none on 9/9/99 (knock on wood). But, what investors, the stock market and the government are doing is my main Y2K barometer. My guess is that the financial community and the government will show by their actions what they think Y2K's effects might be before the general public ever catches on.

-- Linkmeister (link@librarian.edu), July 19, 1999.

Yeah right - and the next article in this "tabloid" ...

100 years ago, nuclear fission & fusion were not known.

-- Anonymous99 (Anonymous99@Anonymous99.xxx), July 19, 1999.

Speaking as a Nuclear Engineer, the next story is quite interesting. The RHIC accelerator is a big machine. I personally do not see a problem with the small number of strange quarks they may produce. But remember there were worries that the Atom Bomb would set fire to the atmosphere. There are always risks when you are working with the unknown. But in this case, big problems are unlikely, we would have seen some evidence at the smaller accelerators.

-- Nuclear (Atom@Smasher.com), July 19, 1999.

Very forthright. I am amazed. The Times is THE most respectible Brit paper.

-- Mara Wayne (MaraWayne@aol.com), July 19, 1999.

"The Times is THE most respectible Brit paper."

Being a 'yank, I'm not real clear on these things, but I believe you are thinking of the "London Times". The "Sunday Times" seems to be less mainstream.

-- Anonymous99 (Anonymous99@Anonymous99.xxx), July 19, 1999.

Speaking as a "Brit" I was very surprised to read this story and yes, The Times, be it Sunday or otherwise is the newspaper read by the city gent. I had heard the story of cancelled leave earlier on this year, but at the moment I am more concerned at finding out which of the "Top Five" banks in the UK that is said to be unlikely to be ready for the date change. No names are being released to the public for fear of a crisis of confidence! The media may be furnished with the the information by September. (This was on BBC Radio 4 today.)

-- Liz Frost (thehalletts@bigfoot.com), July 19, 1999.

Hmmmmmmmmmmm Uhummm.

-- Will continue (farming@home.com), July 19, 1999.

"Speaking as a "Brit" I was very surprised to read this story and yes, The Times, be it Sunday or otherwise is the newspaper read by the city gent. "

Please help me out. There seems to be 3 UK newspapers quoted here in the "colonies" frequently:

• London Times
• Sunday Times (presumably Sunday only)
• London Telegraph

Could you comment on the nature/readership of these papers please?

-- Anonymous99 (Anonymous99@Anonymous99.xxx), July 19, 1999.

The discussion on c.s.y2k is that this article is erecting a "straw man". The thought is that programmers don't think Sept. 9th is a trigger date because the computer sees 09/09/99 NOT 9999 - so it is not likely to trigger any "end of file" glitches. If they play up the preparations though, including:

" Armed troops, some with light tanks and heavy weapons, will be deployed to guard likely targets such as airports. In the worst scenario, some form of martial law might be necessary in localised areas."

... and then nothing happens, they can say "See.. Y2K is fixed. Keep your money in the banks and stock markets. Don't worry, be happy. Go back to sleep."

Interesting though that although this is about England's plans, in the U.S. the National Guard is to be ready to respond to "requests for service" from SEPTEMBER FIRST.

Going to be an interesting summer.

-- Linda (lwmb@psln.com), July 19, 1999.

And an even more interesting Fall, and hooboy! an absolutely fascinating Winter.

-- videocam ready (record@history.making), July 19, 1999.

Just realized what this really is... a firebreak. They are deliberately setting a small fire in advance of the approaching HUGE fire to hopefully head it off. Clue.. the..

"Eight leading financial institutions have asked the MoD for protection."

You would NEVER see this if it represented reality. The banks are so terrified of people losing confidence in their "con game" that they have made Polaroid and KIA pull their ads. In fact when TaskForce 2000 suggested that some leading financial institutions were lagging in their Y2K repairs they ALL screamed bloody murder. But suggesting that banks (certain banks which shall remain nameless) are vulnerable to Sept. 9th, which may cause some to withdraw funds (setting a small fire) will quickly turn around when nothing happens. People will put their cash back in the bank... and feel REALLY STUPID for thinking there could be a problem.. and we can snooze our way toward????? The edge of the cliff?

Who knows, it may even convince the people who pulled out of banks and the market months and months ago to plunge back in. Might see record highs.

And then??

Who knows. My crystal ball is cracked. But you might just see the equavalent of a stampede off a high dive board into a kids wading pool. Not a pretty sight.

Pretty good military strategy though.. me thinks. What think you all?

-- Linda (lwmb@psln.com), July 19, 1999.

I think your last post has my mind playing ping-pong....by myself. Very goooooood. You, unlike Flint, have won many a game of Clue, have you not? hehehe

-- Will continue (farming@home.com), July 19, 1999.

Linda,

I think you win the cupie doll for that analysis! It definitely makes more sense to me than the alternatives.

-- RUOK (RUOK@yesiam.com), July 19, 1999.

Operation Surety. surety:
1.security against loss, damage, or failure to do something. An insurance company gives surety againly loss by fire. Syn.: guaranty, pledge
2. A ground of certainty or safety; guarantee.
...4. Archaica a sure thing; certainty: Of a surety he will come. b the condition of being sure; certain knowledge; sureness.
Cocky those Brits.. eh?

-- Linda (lwmb@psln.com), July 19, 1999.