Western governments have been locked in debate at the UN for over 36 hours trying to come to a consensus over the naming of any possible future no-fly zone in Libya.
Delegates are aware that the simple clarity of the name Operation Deny Flight (for the Balkans no-fly zone in the 1990s) won many opponents over to the plan, and several countries are pushing for a similar, blunt but informative name. Operation No Planes Allowed was proposed by the Danish, but has apparently not received much backing.
The Americans are known to be more in favour of dramatic names, similar to their Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm from the 1990/1991 Gulf War. Their proposal for Operation Blue Sky Vigilance had some initial support, especially from Greece and Finland, but is no longer regarded as a front-runner in the race.
The British have always preferred names that mean absolutely nothing, on the basis that operational names sound like they really should be something secret, even if they are going out immediately on press releases to the whole world. Operation Granby in the Gulf War was an example of this, even though this name resulted in a near disastrous misunderstanding when three US B-52 bombers were temporarily directed to bomb Nottinghamshire.
The French are insisting on using their name of Operation Respecter La Zone D'Exclusion Aérienne, while some in Italy have suggested the name be chosen through a TV live voting show, similar to Eurovision, with possible corporate sponsorship. Berlusconi himself is known to favour a commercial tie-in, possibly using the name Operation Angry Birds.
