63. Mr. Gresham Cookeasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he is aware that the existence of only nine weather ships in the Atlantic prejudices the ability of the Meteorological Office to provide the most accurate weather forecasts for this country; what is the present financial contribution of this country to the cost of those ships; and whether he will take steps, in conjunction with other interested parties, to arrange for an early increase in their numbers.
§ Mr. MillanThe primary purpose of the ocean weather ships is to provide services for civil aircraft crossing the Atlantic.
There are nine ocean weather stations in the North Atlantic, each of which requires two ships to maintain it continuously. Four of the eighteen weather ships are British. The costs of the American weather stations are borne by the American Government; the costs of the remainder are shared between the other countries having an interest in Transatlantic aviation, each country paying a contribution determined in accordance with the volume of its traffic. The present British financial contribution is £350,000 a year.
From a purely meteorological point of view, it would be useful to have more weather stations in this area but in view of the high cost, I do not feel justified at the moment in proposing an increase in the present number.