§ Mr. Bestasked the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about future air defence systems and expected in service dates.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonAs I made clear in the RAF debate on 22 January at columns 1050–51, the RAF's air defence capability will greatly increase in three key areas during the next few years. One hundred and sixty-two of the air defence variant of the Tornado have been ordered, of which 39 have been delivered so far. Installation of the improved UKADGE system is continuing well and will be102W gradually brought into operation during the next few years. Six new transportable radars have now been delivered and preparation of new command and control systems is under way. We are buying the Boeing E-3A aircraft to provide the RAF with a modern and effective airborne early warning capability from the early 1990s.