HC Deb 24 June 1994 vol 245 cc384-5W
Mr. Redmond

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what is the current interval between assignments to duties over Bosnia for Royal Air Force airborne warning and communication system crews; and what deferments of AWACS crew training tasks have taken place as a result of meeting commitments to providing crews for Bosnian operations;

(2) what are the current (a) planned and (b) actual intervals between deployments for operational duties over Bosnia, northern Iraq and southern Iraq, for individual members of aircrew in (a) Tornado GR1/1A squadrons, (b) Tornado F3 squadrons, (c) Harrier squadrons, (d) Jaguar squadrons and (e) Royal Navy Sea Harrier squadrons; and for what period of time aircrew are assigned to these duties on each occasion.

Mr. Hanley

Intervals between deployments of aircrew overseas for operations related to former Yugoslavia and Iraq vary for a variety of reasons. On the assumption that the present pattern of deployments continues unchanged, the number of deployments overseas and the time spent on operational duty by individual RAF aircrew in a full year would on average be of the following order:

Average number in a full year of
Aircraft/Theatre Deployments Weeks spent on operational duties
E-3D: former Yugoslavia 8 16
Tornado GR1/1A: Iraq 0.5 3
Tornado F3: former Yugoslavia 0.67 8

Average number in a full year of
Aircraft/Theatre Deployments Weeks spent on operational duties
Harrier: Iraq 1.33 8
Jaguar: former Yugoslavia 2 16

Royal Navy aircrew flying the Sea Harrier for former Yugoslavia operations deploy to the Adriatic with their ship for about six months at a time. Individuals would not spend the whole of this period on operations, and could expect there to be at least six months between deployments.

The E-3D force is able to meet its operational commitments and although essential crew training is being achieved, the period for initial crew familiarisation has increased.