| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Bagshot Park
Mr. Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on the refurbishment of Bagshot Park prior to its disposal to the Earl of Wessex; what the market value of the property was immediately prior to the works being carried out; and how much the property was sold for. [110990]
Dr. Moonie: Bagshot Park was vacated by the Ministry of Defence at the end of September 1996, having been occupied by the Army Chaplain's Department under a lease with the Crown Estate since 1947. No funds were spent by the Ministry on refurbishment prior to its disposal. However, under the terms of our contractual arrangements with the Crown Estate, a payment was made on surrender of the property, in respect of our outstanding repair obligations.
The subsequent lease of Bagshot Park to the Earl of Wessex in October 1997 is not connected with the MOD's former occupation.
Mr. Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what funding has been committed by his Department to the maintenance and renovation of Bagshot Park in Surrey in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [110422]
Shoeburyness
Mr. Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the level of monitoring for gun explosions at Shoeburyness. [110232]
Dr. Moonie: This is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency. I have asked the Chief Executive to write to my hon. Friend.
Letter from Sir John Chisholm to Mr. Derek Wyatt, dated 21 February 2000:
- I have been asked to reply to your parliamentary question about monitoring for gun explosions at Shoeburyness since the range is part of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA).
21 Feb 2000 : Column: 730W
- A system of acoustic monitoring of the activities at the range has been in place for over 10 years. There are 7 sensors in fixed sites around the Thames Estuary that allow remote recordings to be relayed to a central computer system. Live data containing noise levels and date/time information is fed into the operations room at Shoeburyness where it is displayed graphically for ease of interpretation. In the unlikely event that the noise levels exceed the guideline limits, work will be suspended.
- The prevailing weather conditions are also taken into account. An acoustic prediction programme is run to determine the likely propagation of noise levels. If the forecast appears unfavourable and likely to lead to noise levels exceeding the guideline limit, the work will be rescheduled.
- I hope this explains the situation.
Chinook Crash
Mr. Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the Air Accident Investigation Branch ruled out the possibility of any technical malfunction which may have contributed to the loss of Chinook ZD576 in June 1994. [108696]
Mr. Spellar [holding answer 15 February 2000]: The Air Accident Investigation Branch acted as technical adviser to the RAF Board of Inquiry and produced a comprehensive report on the technical investigation that formed part of the evidence used by the Inquiry. The AAIB concluded that although the pre-impact serviceability of the aircraft could not be positively verified, no evidence was found of a malfunction that could have contributed to the accident, with the possible exception of a radar altimeter system fault.
The AAIB noted several radar altimeter system defects and considered them in detail, but observed that they had probably not severely degraded performance, and there were probably generally correct indications at impact.
After careful consideration of all the available evidence the RAF Board of Inquiry concluded that the most probable cause of the accident was that the crew selected an inappropriate rate of climb to safety overfly the Mull of Kintyre, and the actions of the crew were thus held to be the direct cause of the crash.
Ottawa Treaty
Mr. Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the response of the UK armed forces to the Ottawa Treaty. [110498]
Mr. Hoon: The response of the UK armed forces to the Ottawa Convention has been exemplary. On 19 October last year, the Government announced the complete destruction of all the UK's operational stocks of Anti-Personnel Landmines (APLs), some three years ahead of the requirements set out in the Ottawa Convention. On 27 August last year, the UK submitted its first report to the UN Secretary General on compliance measures under the Ottawa Convention. A copy of the Report was placed in the Library of the House.
Following the Landmines Act 1998, there are now no circumstances under which British service personnel can participate in the laying of anti-personnel mines.
Also, to support world-wide clearance of mines and the overall aims of the Ottawa Convention the Ministry of Defence provides whatever assistance it can to those
21 Feb 2000 : Column: 731W
non-governmental organisations and mine action centres engaged in the removal of APLs that remain in the ground around the world. This can take the form of training in demining techniques, assistance in the development of new equipment, attachment of individuals, or the gifting of surplus military vehicles to assist in their demining activities.
HMS Dumbarton Castle
Mr. Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) if he will replace HMS Dumbarton Castle when she completes her current assignment; and if he will make a statement; [110845]
- (2) if HMS Dumbarton Castle is to be withdrawn from the Falkland Islands; and if he will make a statement. [110844]
Mr. Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when HMS Dumbarton Castle will complete her current assignment; and which vessel will replace her. [110674]
Mr. Spellar: I refer my hon. Friend and the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 14 February 2000, Official Report, columns 373-74W, to the hon. Member for Ludlow (Mr. Gill).
RAF Pilots
Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the average number of flying hours undertaken by fully trained operational RAF pilots, not including pilots on staff/ground tours, in (1) 1998 and (2) 1999 in aircraft type (a) BAe 125, (b) BAe 146, (c) Canberra, (d) Chinook, (e) Harrier, (f) Hercules, (g) Jaguar, (h) Nimrod, (i) Puma, (j) Sea King, (k) Sentry, (l) Tornado F3, (m) Tornado GR1/4, (n) Tristar, (o) VC10 and (p) Wessex; and if he will make a statement. [109493]
Mr. Spellar [holding answer 17 February 2000]: We do not centrally record the flying hours undertaken by individual pilots. Such information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
We do calculate the average hours which crews fly in a given year. This calculation ignores the individual crew rotations and provides only a broad estimate of the flying undertaken. Against these averages, the amount of flying undertaken by individuals might vary considerably.
The average number of flying hours undertaken by a typical crew in 1998 and 1999 is as follows:
Notes:
1. Hours do not include Reserve squadron (OCU) data.
2. Operational flying is all flying undertaken in active theatres, principally the former Yugoslavia and the Middle East.
21 Feb 2000 : Column: 732W
Maintenance
Mr. Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the time and mileage schedule of planned maintenance servicing for (a) Warrior variants (b) Challenger One, (c) Challenger Two, (d) Saxon variants, (f) AVF 430 variants, (g) Sabre, (h) Striker, (i) Scimitar, (j) Spartan, (k) Sultan, (l) Samaritan and (m) Samson in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [109497]
Mr. Spellar: The planned automotive maintenance schedules, which have been valid for the past five years or since the vehicle entered service, are as follows:
| Servicing | Vehicle type | Maintenance schedule |
|---|---|---|
| (a) | Warrior | 1,250 miles or 12 months |
| (15)2,500 miles or 24 months | ||
| (b) | Challenger 1 | 2,000 miles or 12 months |
| (c) | Challenger 2 | 2,000 miles or 12 months |
| (d) | Saxon | 5,000 miles or 12 months |
| (15)10,000 miles or 24 months | ||
| (e) | FV432 Variants | 1,500 miles or 12 months |
| (f)-(l) | CVR(T) Variants(16) | 3,000 miles or 12 months |
(15) Different maintenance routines apply at the different distance/time points.
(16) Includes Sabre, Striker, Scimitar, Spartan, Sultan, Samaritan and Samson.
In addition to the planned maintenance shown, tanks and vehicles are subject to running tests and monthly functional servicing. Additional maintenance routines apply to vehicles based on distances travelled (where less than those shown above) either in training or on operational missions. Reactive repair maintenance is conducted as necessary.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |