Air Force on guard for terrorist plots against domestic drone bases.

• Author: Magnuson, Stew
• Position: SECURITY BEAT

Taliban and al-Qaida militants targeted by U.S. unmanned aircraft may attempt to retaliate against bases in Nevada and Arizona where the pilots remotely control the drones, said an Air Force official.

Col. Jeff Eggers, Air Force director of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance innovations, said those being targeted by unmanned aircraft have already struck back at the bases in the theaters of operation where the drones land and takeoff. This usually comes in the form of mortar attacks.

But officials also fear that militants may seek revenge on U.S. forces by making direct attacks on bases located in the United States, where the operators fly the unmanned aerial vehicles and launch the missiles that kill militants.

"We are taking very seriously in the United States the notion of insurgency teams coming surreptitiously in the states and trying to attack our bases for just that reason,"...