Gibraltar fury as four Spanish military jets fly through its

* Spanish jets accused of entering Gibraltar airspace during military exercise

* British officials say no warning given and BA flight delayed for 12 minutes

* Gibraltar calls on UK to address matter with Spain on 'highest diplomatic and military levels'

* Spanish Defence Ministry deny fighter jets entered Gibraltar airspace

* Comes after Spanish boats seen in British waters this month

* Jet ski rider Dale Villa also says he was shot at by Spanish police

* Tensions between the UK and Spain over the sovereignty of Gibraltar increased 
   today after Spanish jets forced the delay of a British Airways flight.

Angry government officials demanded the issue be raised at the highest levels after four fighter planes were accused of entering Gibraltar airspace during a military exercise in the area.

Officials in the British territory insist no warning was given prior to the incursion and that the commercial BA flight was subsequently forced to wait on the tarmac for 12 minutes.



The Gibraltar government has called on the UK to bring the matter up with Spain on the 'highest diplomatic and military levels' after four Spanish fighter planes allegedly entered its airspace



The alleged incursion delayed a British Airways flight to London by 12 minutes and 'no warning was given'



Incident may intensify the diplomatic row between Britain and Spain coming just days after David Cameron, top, confronted his Spanish counterpart Mariano Rajoy, below, over Spanish police entering British waters

 
Eyewitnesses described seeing the jets pass very close to the Rock in an incident described by military personnel as 'being buzzed'.

'The Government of Gibraltar has called on the UK to take up the matter of this military incursion into the airspace of Gibraltar at the highest diplomatic and military levels,' said a government spokesman.

A foreign office official added: 'We have raised this with London and Madrid.'

The jets are understood to have come from a Spanish aircraft carrier, Juan Carlos I, based about 10 miles from the Rock.

Spanish Defence Ministry deny that Spanish fighter jets entered Gibraltar airspace.

A Gibraltar government spokesman said: 'At no time did the aircraft make contact with Gibraltar's air-traffic control and the Spanish air traffic authorities in Seville gave no warning of the aircrafts' approach.'

The incident comes just days after Prime Minister David Cameron complained to his Spanish counterpart Mariano Rajoy over an incident in which a British jet skier was allegedly shot at by Spanish police in the waters surrounding the Rock.



Incursion: This photograph shows a Spanish police boat which entered British waters off Gibraltar



Britain was plunged into a diplomatic crisis over Gibraltar after Spanish police fired shots at British jet-skier Dale Villa, pictured, in waters around the Rock

It comes after Spanish police twice entered British waters once, in a public rebuke to British warnings not to do so.

Last week, the Foreign Office protested to the Spanish government after a boat from Spain’s Guardia Civil entered Gibraltan waters and took potshots at 32-year-old Dale Villa as he rode his jet-ski close to a popular beach.

Just three days later, a police boat was seen in British waters again.
Mr Cameron said: ‘I have raised this with the Spanish Prime Minister. I think this is a totally unacceptable episode and I made that clear.

‘I think it’s very important the people of Gibraltar know that we support them, we support their sovereignty, we will always stand up for them and stand by them.

‘I think it’s very important countries obey all the international rules, all the international laws.’

Spain's foreign ministry denied that any shots were fired, and accused the British Government of granting too much credibility to a 'rumour'.

But Mr Cameron made clear that he thought the Spanish police had breached international rules.

The PM added: ‘We need to find out more about exactly what happened but from all I've heard from the First Minister in Gibraltar it’s not acceptable and that's why I raised the issue and I think we can avoid these incidents in future.'



This photograph apparently shows the jet ski trying to escape from the Spanish police while under fire



Worrying: The jet ski rider said he had been taking friends and family members on rides when he was chased by the Guardia Civil vessel

Father-of-three Mr Villa described how he had been fired at on two separate occasions as he tested his new jet-ski with family and friends on Sunday afternoon.

‘I was very shaken and furious,’ said the delivery driver.

‘When a huge boat is hurling after you and you hear gunshots it is very scary. There were three policemen on the boat and I actually saw one of them with a gun in his hand.

‘I was just about to drop my friend off at West Beach when I heard the first shot. I don’t really think we took it seriously or believed it could be a gun, but clearly it was.

‘I jumped back on again and whizzed off before realising the boat was chasing after me and had soon fired three more shots at me.

‘I had only just taken my friend’s ten-year-old daughter out for a spin and was about to pick up her grandmother so we were not being threatening or doing anything wrong.

‘Maybe these guys were bored – it being a Sunday – but I really hope something is going to be done about it, as it is outrageous.’

Shots can be heard on a grainy video filmed by a witness.

British sources said it was thought the Spanish police fired rubber bullets at the man.

The UK’s charge d’affaires in Madrid was also despatched to make direct representations to ministers in the Spanish capital.

The incident is believed to have been witnessed by an off-duty officer from the Royal Gibraltar Police, which has launched a formal investigation.

But a spokesman for Spain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said ‘no incident’ had taken place’ and ‘no shot fired’.

Britain was given Gibraltar in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, but Spain has said it will never renounce its claim to sovereignty.

British sources said Gibraltar suffered frequent illegal incursions into its waters by Spanish boats, including police and naval vessels. From December last year to April, officials recorded 176 illegal incursions by Spanish boats.

Mmm ... Spain needs to stop fcking about before it finds that it has bitten off more than it can chew and fcking chokes me thinks - Fx