HC Deb 01 February 1993 vol 218 cc34-5W
Mr. Cousins

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many vehicle breakdowns of specialist vehicles designed for the movement of nuclear warheads, bombs and other arms, whether loaded or unloaded, occurred in the counties of Durham, Tyne and Wear and Northumberland in 1992.

Mr. Archie Hamilton

In 1992 there was one instance where a mechanical problem with a vehicle designed for the transportation of nuclear weapons caused a military convoy to make an unscheduled stop while travelling in the specified area. After inspection of the vehicle, the full convoy was able to continue its journey.

Mr. Cousins

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the vehicle reliability performance of(a) Mammoth Major nuclear arms material transit vehicles and (b) Foden nuclear arms material transit vehicles in 1992.

Mr. Archie Hamilton

The Truck Cargo Heavy Duty (TCHD) Mk 1 vehicle (Mammoth Major) has been replaced by the TCHD Mk 2. Despite some minor teething problems, the new vehicles represent a significant improvement in mechanical reliability over the Mk 1 vehicles. Both old and new vehicles provided a safe and secure means of nuclear warhead transport in 1992.

Back to