On 9 August 2006, British police arrested 24 people for questioning. The arrests were made in [[London]], [[Birmingham]], and [[High Wycombe]], Buckinghamshire, in an overnight operation. Two of the arrests were made in the Birmingham area and five were made in High Wycombe; firearms officers were not involved in the arrests.<ref name="BBC-suspects">{{cite news|title=Homes cleared in anti-terror raid |work=BBC News |date=10 August 2006 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/beds/bucks/herts/4780697.stm |access-date=20 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131212222206/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/beds/bucks/herts/4780697.stm |archive-date=12 December 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref> The key suspects were British-born [[Muslims]], some of [[British Pakistanis|Pakistani descent]].<ref>{{cite news|first=Philip |last=Webster |author2=Sean O'Neill |author3=Stewart Tendler |date=11 August 2006 |title=A Plan 'to commit unimaginable mass murder' |work=The Times |___location=London |access-date=17 February 2009 |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article606341.ece |archive-url=https://archive.today/20110222012903/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article606341.ece |archive-date=22 February 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Alan |last=Cowell |author-link=Alan Cowell |author2=[[Dexter Filkins]] |date=10 August 2006 |title=British Authorities Say Plot to Blow Up Airliners Was Foiled |work=The New York Times |access-date=17 February 2009 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/10/world/europe/11terrorcnd.html| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120502164409/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/10/world/europe/11terrorcnd.html| archive-date=2 May 2012| url-status= live}}</ref><ref name="BBC-disrupted">{{cite news|title='Airlines terror plot' disrupted |work=BBC News |date=10 August 2006 |access-date=17 February 2009 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4778575.stm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110412095843/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4778575.stm |archive-date=12 April 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref> Three of the suspects were recent [[Religious conversion|converts]] to [[Islam]].<ref name="BBC-suspects2">{{cite news|title=Who are the terror plot suspects? |work=BBC News |date=11 August 2006 |access-date=17 February 2009 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4783215.stm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081203235552/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4783215.stm |archive-date=3 December 2008 |url-status=live }}</ref>
Eight of the suspects were later charged with conspiracy to murder and commit acts of terrorism, a further three with failing to disclose information about acts of terrorism, and one youth with possession of articles related to a terrorist act. Others were released without charge.<ref name=natta20060828 />
