§ Mr. Eldon Griffithsasked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the cracks found in RAF Buccaneer aircraft, setting out the arrangements which he has made to avoid 220W any consequential risks to those who live in the vicinity of the main Buccaneer base at RAF Honnington, Suffolk, his plans for the repair or replacement of the affected parts of these aircraft, and the effect, if any, on the RAF's ability to fulfil its NATO and British national defence duties.
§ Mr. Wilkinsonasked the Secretary of State for Defence whether he will make a preliminary statement on the structural integrity of the Buccaneer aircraft in Royal Air Force service and on the measures which he has taken to maintain the interdictor and strike capability of the Service while the Buccaneer force remains grounded.
§ Mr. PattieMetal fatigue was found in the mainplane front spar in part of the inner wing recovered from the wreckage of an RAF Buccaneer which crashed in Nevada on 7 February 1980. It was, therefore, thought prudent immediately to suspend all peacetime non-operational flying by RAF Buccaneers pending the results of further investigation of the wreckage, some of which was returned to this country only last Friday for examination at RAE Farnborough. It is, therefore, too early to say whether this metal fatigue was a contributory factor in the accident. Inspection of the Buccaneer force has identified minor fatigue cracks in the relevant portion of the wings of a further 25 aircraft. It is expected that most of these cracks will be easily repairable by removing the affected metal, but until the technical examination at RAE Farnborough is complete and we can be satisfied of the complete integrity of the aircraft structure, we have decided it would be prudent not to fly the aircraft to its full performance envelope in peacetime. The limitations which would be necessary would be such as to preclude productive operational training and, therefore, apart from ferrying back those aircraft currently in the USA the suspension of operational training remains in force. Such training will not resume until we can be totally confident about the aircraft's safety and hence the safety of the aircrews and the public.
Our wartime operational capabilities, and our force declarations to NATO, are 221W unaffected by this suspension since the aircraft could be flown operationally if the need arose and the aircrew capabilities can, for a period, be maintained by simulator training and the use of other aircraft types. Meanwhile the technical examination is being pursued with great urgency.