'Nuclear disaster waiting to happen': Royal Navy probes Trident whistleblower's claims

© Reuters / Danny Lawson
HMS Victorious is seen berthed at the Clyde Naval Base in Scotland

    
The Royal Navy has launched an investigation into whistleblower William McNeilly, who exposed horrid security lapses in UK's trident nuclear program which make it easier for intruders to access some secured areas than enter "most nightclubs."

UK authorities are of the 25-year old whistleblower, who went absent without leave and cooperated with WikiLeaks to post a detailed 18-page report called The Nuclear Secrets.

McNeilly, a weapons engineer, who allegedly served from January to April this year on board the HMS Victorious, claims that a number of security lapses and technical faults with the Trident missiles carrier exposes the UK nuclear deterrent to potential terrorist attacks that

Possible attackers have e claims.

In his revelations, the whistleblower notes some 30 safety and security flaws on Trident submarines that are based out of Faslane on the Clyde, Scotland. McNeilly took his time outlining the ease at which potential terrorist can infiltrate the secured base.

the whistleblower explains.

McNeilly wrote.

An intruder could bring inside the secured facility any private electronic device to potentially steal top secret data - or even weapons and explosives, since the whistleblower claims, contractors and their equipment are hardly ever being searched.

Lack of security checks was not because McNeilly was among the Royal Navy personnel, but because

he wrote.

Besides the evident security flaws, the weapons technician lists a number of equipment problems, including a seawater leak, a flooded torpedo compartment and defective toilets. His revelations include missile compartment being used as an exercise gym, and the communication system that was difficult to understand.

he wrote.

The state of affairs is so chaotic that McNeilly says any can gain access to UK's nuclear site.

It's just a matter of time before we're infiltrated by a psychopath or a terrorist," he says."There were some people that I served with on that patrol who showed clear psychopathic tendencies."

In his testimony the runaway weapons engineer submariner also claims that the missile launch tests failed on three occasions during his serve time, meaning a successful launch would likely be impossible.

Basically they're endangering the public and spending billions upon billions of tax payers money for a system so broken it can't even do the tests that prove it works," he wrote.

McNeilly also writes that there was a "massive cover-up" of the HMS Vanguard submarine colliding with a French nuclear submarine, Le Triomphant, in the Atlantic in February 2009. In his report, he quotes a senior officer who was on Vanguard at the time as saying:

The Royal Navy has launched an investigation into McNeilly's report, calling his claims adding that

While acknowledging that McNeilly's report does the Ministry of Defense is nonetheless working with the police to find him.

the Navy said.

The whistleblower who has not returned from his leave of absence since taking off last week, acknowledged that

The worst fear for me isn't prison or being assassinated, it's the fear of sacrificing everything I have just to warn the public and yet never be heard," the 25-year-old wrote.

Some Scottish Civil Rights organizations have welcomed the sailor's courageous act.

He should be commended for his action, not hounded by the Royal Navy. He has exposed the fact that Trident is a catastrophe waiting to happen - by accident, an act of terrorism or sabotage," John Ainslie, co-ordinator of the Scottish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, told The Herald.

Meanwhile the leader of SNP in London, MP Angus Robertson has called for full explanation and action remedy from the Royal Navy.

Robertson said.

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