A Saudi Ministry of Defense and Aviation ridiculed the London Al-Quds Al-Arabi newspaper and Al-Jazirah satellite TV reports that the Saudi authorities' had arrested of four pilots, after finding their behavior suspicious during the air force's exercises on October 15. The Saudi Arabia air and naval exercise in the northwestern part of the kingdom started last week and included F-15S directed by E-3As, as well as fast attack naval craft and air defense systems. Based at the Tabuk's King Faisal Air Base, near the Jordanian border and 200 kilometers from Israel, the exercise was part of a series of maneuvers that would take place along Saudi Arabia's northern border. 

The Arab Gulf Cooperation Council (AGCC) joint air exercise (Saqr Al Jazeera II Fighters 2003) also concluded without incident on October 8. Part of the exercise executing a notional air attack against Thumrait Air Base, which was countered by the base's ground defenses. 

While weapons and inflammatory literature were found during a recent raid on a house in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, Saudi authorities also denied finding of three rockets nearby that were set up towards the sea and ready to be launched against US naval targets. - Adam Geibel