SAS fast-rope onto Manchester fire station from two Blue Thunder helicopters leaving residents stunned
- Black-clad figures abseiled out of the hovering military choppers in Manchester
- Residents watched as the crew slid down the cable in ‘fast-roping’ technique
- SAS soldiers were last believed to be in action during 2017 London Bridge attack
Two SAS ‘Blue Thunder’ helicopters were spotted deploying suspected special forces during a training exercise yesterday.
Black-clad figures abseiled out of the hovering military choppers and on to the roof of Manchester Central Fire Station in Ancoats.
Gobsmacked residents watched as the crew slid down the cable – in a technique known as fast-roping – and fanned out across the roof before being whisked away in an SUV.
The helicopters were last seen during the 2017 Borough Market terrorist attack when a Blue Thunder swooped down on to London Bridge.
Black-clad figures abseiled out of the hovering military choppers and on to the roof of Manchester Central Fire Station in Ancoats
Gobsmacked residents watched as the crew slid down the cable – in a technique known as fast-roping – and fanned out across the roof before being whisked away in an SUV
Manchester Fire Service confirmed that extra-departmental exercise had happened.
Jonathan Ward, who observed the chopper land ‘within spitting distance’ of his balcony, said: ‘I jumped out of my skin!’
Little is known about the secretive Blue Thunder unit, other than that they are 70-man team directly accountable to the Home Secretary.
Formed in the wake of the 2015 Paris attacks, the unit is tasked with responding to high-threat domestic situations in the Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin helicopter.
The SAS – short for Special Air Service – is a covert and tactical arm of the British Army which is rarely seen in public.
Britain’s elite special forces army wing were last believed to be in action during the 2017 Borough Market terrorist attack when Blue Thunder swooped down on to London Bridge
An elite SAS unit was scrambled to London Bridge to hunt down and eliminate the jihadi terrorists
In addition to responding to the London Bridge terror killings, SAS soldiers were deployed a few weeks earlier in May 2017 to storm houses in Manchester after the explosion at the Ariana Grande concert.
Fast-roping is a rapid deployment method where soldiers use heat-resistant gloves to quickly slide down a thick cord.
It has been reported that the Blue Thunder squad are a branch of the 22nd SAS regiment and the choppers are piloted by members of 658 Squadron of the Army Air Corps.
MailOnline have contacted the Ministry of Defence for comment.
SAS soldiers helped police carry out house raids in the wake of the Manchester Arena bombing in 2017
Formed in the wake of the 2015 Paris attacks, the unit is tasked with responding to high-threat domestic situations in the Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin helicopter (pictured at London Bridge)