§ 13. Mr. Fortescueasked the Minister of Technology what assistance he is giving to the development of an all-British 200 seat mini-airbus with RB211 engines.
§ Mr. StonehouseNo manufacturer is currently seeking any such assistance.
§ Mr. FortescueAs the research and development costs of the RB211 engines will now be covered in full on another project, and in view of the doubt which must be the case on the building of the A300 airbus, in the light of the Minister's Answer earlier, is it not time for the Minister to reconsider his views on our never being able to build another airliner on our own, more particularly as the kind of airliner described in the Question was B.E.A's second choice ahead of the Trident 3Bs which the Corporation will in fact get?
§ Mr. StonehouseThe BAC211 project was rejected last year because we were, not by any means certain that the market demand for it would be large enough to justify the research and development expenditure. Those strict criteria must continue to be applied to any project on which we embark, whether it is collaborative or wholly United 10 Kingdom. We will certainly consider any proposal made to us, but we must be convinced that we shall sell sufficient numbers of these aircraft to justify the huge development costs involved.