HL Deb 08 February 1977 vol 379 cc1034-6

2.50 p.m.

Lord BALFOUR of INCHRYE

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 whether the study of the possible use of airships for fishing patrol work has been concluded.

Lord WINTERBOTTOM

My Lords, potential military applications for unconventional craft, such as airships, are kept continually under review. However, existing designs of airships are not thought to be suitable for fishery protection tasks around the United Kingdom.

The Earl of KIMBERLEY

My Lords, is it not true that while one of the arguments put against airships for fishery protection is that they are not very good in inclement weather, during the 1914–1918 War the weather must have been just as bad but they were used by both sides? Why are things different now?

Lord WINTERBOTTOM

My Lords, that is digging back into history. We are talking about operating in the exceptionally harsh conditions of the north North Sea; and it is the view of the Navy that this is not a suitable vehicle for the purposes described.

Lord DAVIES of LEEK

My Lords, may I ask my noble friend whether any effort has been made to try a pilot scheme in this connection? Is he aware that to judge the airships of today by those of 1918 is merely defamatory of our excellent aeronautical engineering; and a little encouragement in this direction may be of benefit to the economy of Britain? May I therefore suggest he asks his noble friend whether a pilot scheme could be tried on the efficicy of these airships over the North Sea?

Lord WINTERBOTTOM

My Lords, if my noble friend is referring to Aerospace Developments Limited, who have an airship on the stocks, a preliminary meeting with the firm has taken place and the firm was advised that further technical data would be required before a naval assessment could be made.

Lord PAGET of NORTHAMPTON

My Lords, can the noble Lord tell us whether through our satellites we are in a position to watch these areas in the North Sea, and to plot the positions of ships from satellite information?

Lord WINTERBOTTOM

My Lords, that is another question; but the Nimrod is performing excellently in this role.

Lord DAVIES of LEEK

My Lords, is my noble friend aware that there is encouragement there; but that I am thinking of the broader issue of the possibility of using British aeronautical engineering progress?

Lord WINTERBOTTOM

My Lords, we are talking about a survey of the fishing patrols.

Lord SLATER

My Lords, is my noble friend aware that one begins to wonder how it comes about that we do not seem to be able to get out of our system these types of obsolete creations which many of us—and we already have been reminded of this today—operated during the 1914–1918 war? They are obsolete; they belong to the past. Why go back to the past instead of looking to the future?

Lord WINTERBOTTOM

My Lords, I am grateful to my noble friend for his comments.

Lord BALERNO

My Lords, is the noble Lord aware that in the First Great War there was, 30 miles North of Aberdeen, a base for airships; and that they operated there for quite a period of time?

Viscount ST. DAVIDS

My Lords, is the noble Lord aware that these aircraft which, in their First World War form, were known as "blimps", were extremely successful as anti-submarine and patrol vessels because of their very high speed and ability to keep in the air despite engine failure (which normal aircraft cannot do) and because of their ability to stop their engines for fuel economy, which normal aircraft cannot do? Despite the use of modern material in gas containers, which are far better now than then, and despite structural engineering with modern equipment, also far better now than then, can it be true that these machines are not worth testing now?

Lord WINTERBOTTOM

My Lords, they are being studied but the preliminary studies are not very encouraging.