Air Commodore Harveyasked the Minister of Civil Aviation whether he will make a statement on the future of the aerodrome fire service.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydAfter a thorough review of the present fire-fighting arrangements in the light of post-war experience, I have decided on a substantial re-organisation and re-equipment of the aerodrome fire services. The object of the re-organisation is to increase the speed of rescue operations and therefore the chances of success during the first few crucial minutes of an aircraft fire. At the same time, standardisation of equipment and the elimination of obsolete vehicles should achieve considerable economy.
The new arrangements will be introduced progressively as more modern equipment becomes available. There is bound to be some reduction in staff, though all possible steps will be taken to minimise hardship on this account.