§ Mr. Sorensenasked the Under-Secretary of State for Air, in view of annoyance and alarm caused by low-flying jet aircraft over Leyton on 25th June, and particularly the harmful effects of such incidents on children, sick persons and the aged, if he will take action to prevent its recurrence.
Mr. WardAircraft are normally forbidden to fly low over built-up areas. These particular flights took place during a special air defence exercise over South-Eastern England. Such exercises are a vital part of the training of our fighter defences against enemy attacks which might be made at any level at any time of the day. I greatly regret the disturbance to civilians, which we avoid wherever possible. But to eliminate this type of training would seriously impair the efficiency of our air defences.