HC Deb 09 May 1989 vol 152 c420W
110. Mr. Favell

To ask the Secretary of State For Defence if he will make a statement on the location of the Nimrod AEW airframes and the use to which they are to be put.

Mr. Sainsbury

Three Nimrod AEW airframes have been broken up for spares to support the Nimrod maritime patrol aircraft fleet. A fourth is a ground instructional aircraft at RAF Finningley. The remaining aircraft are currently at RAF Abingdon. Following careful consideration, we have concluded that there is no viable alternative use for five of these airframes, and they are now being used for spares to support the Nimrod maritime patrol aircraft fleet. The future use of the last two airframes is still under consideration.