§ Mr. Moonmanasked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the projected increase in low flying aircraft, with the aim of obtaining more realistic military training, and on the implication for the residents of South Essex, in particular of Basildon, Billericay and Wickford.
§ Mr. Wellbeloved:I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Gloucestershire, West (Mr. Watkinson) on 12th December 1978.—[Vol. 960, c. 419.] The new arrangements do not entail increases in the amount of low flying training, nor do they involve changes in the basic principles by which it is conducted. They are designed to disperse the low flying far more evenly than before. This will improve the training and enhance flight safety; it should also be of general benefit to the public in many areas where low flying has been practised in the past. The constituency of Basildon had little low flying in the past, and with the introduction of the revised system will have none.