§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the average cost of a flight of(a) Hercules aircraft and (b) Chinook helicopters involved in the operation to relieve Kurds on the borders of Iraq; what is the cost of other relief work undertaken by United Kingdom forces; and what proportion of costs incurred by the armed forces in the operation to relieve Iraqi Kurds will fall on the Overseas Development Administration budget.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonIt is too early to give an estimate of the cost of MOD assistance to the Overseas Development Administration in support of its programme of humanitarian relief to the Kurds. The charges to the ODA will cover mainly the deployment of aircraft, goods supplied and in-theatre flying for the air drop, as well as the cost of building and supplying camps. Charges to the ODA for aircraft used in the relief operation will be based on an estimated average cost per flying hour of £2,020 for a Hercules and £2,445 for a Chinook.