Lance Missile (Hansard, 6 November 1989)

§ Mr. Macdonald
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) by how much the operational life of the Lance missile could be extended by a programme of refurbishment;
(2) when the Lance missile will come to the end of its effective operational life.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
It is general practice to keep the performance of all weapon systems under review. On current estimates it is believed that the Lance missile will be unsustainable beyond the mid 1990s.

§ Mr. Macdonald
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence by how much the recent refurbishment of the rocket motors to the Lance missile has extended its effective operational life.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
The recent refurbishment was designed to maintain operational effectiveness throughout the missile's planned operational life; it was not intended to extend the operational life.

§ Mr. Macdonald
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the "Statement on the Defence Estimates 1989", vol. 1, p. 51, fig. 12, how many Lance missiles are deployed to accompany the 88 Lance launchers.

§ Mr. Archie Hamilton
The number of Lance missiles deployed in Europe is classified information.