§ Mr. Harry GreenwayTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many miles on average type 42 destroyers have travelled over the past 10 years; how many they were designed to travel and over what period; and what steps he is taking to ensure that they are capable of operating for their full service lives.
§ Mr. SainsburyType 42 destroyers have travelled approximately 31,000 nautical miles per ship per year over the last 10 years. Mileage is not used as a design and operating criterion; ship life is measured in years and experience has shown this to be a good criterion, which takes account of the variety of factors which affect life such as sea states, operational conditions and ship speed. A refitting and maintenance cycle is in operation which ensures that the ships will be fully capable throughout their service life.
§ Mr. Harry GreenwayTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if the replacement for the type 42 destroyer will be given the same length of trials periods as the type 22 frigates.
§ Mr. SainsburyThe acceptance trials of the vessel to replace the type 42 destroyer are expected to take a similar amount of time to those for earlier classes of ships of a similar technical complexity.
§ Mr. Harry GreenwayTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans his Department has to replace the type 42 destroyers when they begin to leave service in 1998.
§ Mr. SainsburyThe Government are continuing to participate in the NFR 90 project, which could eventually meet the Royal Navy's requirement for an anti-air warfare escort to replace the type 42 destroyers.