HL Deb 22 October 1968 vol 296 cc1435-6

2.36 p.m.

LORD TREFGARNE

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

[The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government—

  1. (i) How many V.H.F. Omni-Directional Range (V.O.R.) beacons in the British airways system have colocated or associated Distance Measuring Equipment (D.M.E.) facilities;
  2. (ii) whether they have any plans for increasing this number;
  3. (iii) whether, in the light of its suitability for smaller aircraft, they, will approve the V.O.R./D.M.E. system as standard in addition to the Decca system already approved.]

LORD BESWICK

My Lords, eight of the V.H.F. Omni-Directional Range (V.O.R.) beacons in the United Kingdom airways system have co-located or associated Distance Measuring Equipment (D.M.E.) facilities. A plan to increase this number to twenty-four is proceeding and the majority (twenty-two) should be installed by December 31, 1969. V.O.R./D.M.E. is the I.C.A.O. standard short-range navigational aid and is also the approved standard system for that purpose in the United Kingdom. It is usable by any aircraft which carries the necessary airborne equipment. For flights under Instrument Flight Rules in controlled airspace, aircraft are required to be equipped with a V.O.R. receiver and an Automatic Direction Finder. No general exemption from this requirement is granted but it has been agreed that Decca equipment may be used instead. There is no requirement at present for aircraft to be equipped with a D.M.E. receiver; this could become necessary and the matter is being kept under review.

LORD TREFGARNE

My Lords, I am obliged to the noble Lord for that Answer, as always. Will he give consideration to granting approval for the carriage, particularly by aircraft of less than 12,500 lb. all-up weight, of a V.O.R./D.M.E. system as an alternative to the V.O.R./A.D.F. system and a further alternative to the Decca system?

LORD BESWICK

My Lords, yes, they can, if they so wish, carry that equipment. There is no mandatory requirement at the present time.

LORD TREFGARNE

My Lords, I wonder whether the noble Lord quite understood me. I was seeking approval for the carriage of the V.O.R./D.M.E. equipment as separate from, and not including, the V.O.R./A.D.F. or the Decca system.

LORD BESWICK

My Lords, I may well have misunderstood the noble Lord, but I tell him again in the same terms that no approval is required for them to carry it. If the noble Lord is asking the question whether it ought to be mandatory, then the answer is, not as yet.

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