Low Flying (Hansard, 18 April 1996)

§ Mr. Soames

Details of breaches of military low flying regulations during 1995 confirmed to date by RAF police investigations are as follows. A number of alleged breaches during the year are still under investigation. Unless stated otherwise a lateral breach of the avoidance area listed occurred in each case.

Date	Location	Numbers and type of A/C	Nationality	Nature of breach
4 January	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	1 x Tornado	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
5 January	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	1 x Tornado	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
11 January	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	1 x Tornado	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
17 January	Haddington East Lothian	1 x Jaguar	RAF	East Fortune Microlight Site avoidance area
20 January	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	3 x Harrier	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
23 January	Near Hay-on-Wye Powys	4 x F15	USAF	Hay Bluff Hang Gliding Site avoidance area
24 January	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	1 x Tornado	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
2 February	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	1 x Tornado	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
16 February	Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway	1 x Harrier	RAF	Lockerbie avoidance area
15 March	Sellafield Cumbria	1 x Harrier	RAF	BNFL Sellafield avoidance area
22 March	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	2 x F15	USAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
23 March	Bude Cornwall	1 x Tornado	TTTE	Seasonal avoidance in Little Youlstone
24 March	Bude Cornwall	1 x Hunter	RAF	Seasonal avoidance in Little Youlstone

580W

Date	Location	Numbers and type of A/C	Nationality	Nature of breach
31 March	Ruabon Clwyd	1 x Sea Harrier	RN	Monsanto Chemical Works avoidance area
3 April	Frittenden Kent	3 x Chinook	RAF	Unauthorised flight within UK night low flying system
5 April	Corsham Wiltshire	3 x Chinook	RAF	Unauthorised flight within UK night low flying system
7 April	Newent Gloucester	2 x F15	USAF	Unauthorised flight within LFA 4 of the UKLFS
11 April	Milton Keynes Bucking-hamshire	1 x Tornado	TTTE	Milton Keynes General Hospital avoidance area
19 April	Near Gainsborough Lincolnshire	1 x Tornado	TTTE	CANP avoidance area
20 April	Near Gainsborough Lincolnshire	1 x Tornado	RAF	CANP avoidance area
21 April	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	1 x Harrier	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
5 May	Bude Cornwall	1 x Hawk	RAF	Seasonal avoidance in Little Youlstone
9 May	Bude Cornwall	1 x Tornado	RAF	Seasonal avoidance in Little Youlstone
9 May	Talgarth Dyfed	1 x Harrier	RAF	Black Mountains Gliding Club avoidance area
9 May	Talgarth Dyfed	1 x Harrier	RAF	Unauthorised flight in LFA 7 of the UKLFS
11 May	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	1 x Tornado	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
16 May	Auchleven Grampian	1 x F15	USAF	Insch Airfield avoidance area
17 May	Auchleven Grampian	1 x Jaguar	RAF	Insch Airfield avoidance area
23 May	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	1 x Tornado	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
25 May	Talgarth Dyfed	1 x Harrier	RAF	Black Mountains Gliding Club avoidance area

581W

Date	Location	Numbers and type of A/C	Nationality	Nature of breach
25 May	Newent Gloucestershire	1 x Harrier	RAF	National Birds of Prey Centre avoidance area
6 June	Auchleven Grampian	1 x Jaguar	RAF	Insch Airfield avoidance area
7 June	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	1 x Hercules	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
8 June	Loch Eil Lochaber	1 x Jaguar	RAF	CANP avoidance area
13 June	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	1 x F15	USAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
27 June	Talgarth Dyfed	2 x F15	USAF	Black Mountain Gliding Club avoidance area
27 June	Talgarth Dyfed	2 x F15	USAF	Unauthorised flight in LFA 7 of the UKLFS
29 June	Staple Kent	1 x Hawk	RAF	Unnecessary repetitive overflight
1 July	Minster Kent	1 x Wessex	RAF	Unauthorised flight in LFA 18 of the UKLFS
5 July	Carmarthen Powys	2 x Harrier	RAF	Dyfed/Powys Police Helicopter Landing Site avoidance area
7 July	Driffield East Yorks	1 x Tornado	TTTE	Overflew Driffield, a town listed for avoidance
7 July	Llanwrtyd Wells Powys	1 x Harrier	RAF	Operational Low Flying avoidance near Llanwrtyd Wells
13 July	Hull Humberside	1 x Jaguar	RAF	Saltend PetroChemical Works avoidance area
19 July	Hawick Borders	1 x Tornado	RAF	Overflew Hawick, a town listed for avoidance
24 July	Newport Gwent	1 x Hercules	RAF	British Steel Llanwern Works temporary avoidance area
24 July	Duns Berwickshire	1 x Tornado	TTTE	Dexter Non Woven Chirnside Mill temporary avoidance area

582W

Date	Location	Numbers and type of A/C	Nationality	Nature of breach
25 July	Newport Gwent	1 x Tornado	TTTE	British Steel Llanwern Works temporary avoidance area
26 July	Sherfield English Hampshire	1 x Puma	RAF	Unauthorised flight within LFA 1 of the UKLFS
10 August	Kettering Northamptonshire	1 x F15	USAF	Boughton House avoidance area
15 August	Keswick Cumbria	1 x Tornado	TTTE	Bewaldeth Hang Gliding Site avoidance area
24 August	Ruabon Clwyd	2 x MH53	USAF	Flexsys (formerly Monsanto) Chemical Works avoidance area
29 August	Near Downham Market Norfolk	4 x Harrier	RAF	CANP avoidance
30 August	Near Downham Market Norfolk	1 x Tornado	RAF	CANP avoidance
30 August	Near Downham Market Norfolk	1 x Tornado	RAF	Unauthorised flight within LFA 6 of the UKLFS
31 August	Near Downham Market Norfolk	2 x Harrier	RAF	CANP avoidance
31 August	Near Downham Market Norfolk	2 x Harrier	RAF	Unauthorised flight within LFA 6 of the UKLFS
11 September	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	2 x Tornado	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
14 September	Kendal Cumbria	4 x F15	USAF	Unauthorised flight within UKLFS
15 September	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	2 x Tornado	RAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area
20 September	Near Holbeach Lincs	1 x Tornado	TTTE	CANP avoidance
29 September	Newport Gwent	1 x Hawk	RN	British Steel Llanwern Works temporary avoidance area
20 October	Newport Gwent	1 x Hawk	RAF	British Steel Llanwern Works temporary avoidance area
2 November	Corse Lawn Gloucestershire	2 x Harrier	RAF	Unauthorised flight within LFA 4 of the UKLFS

583W

Date	Location	Numbers and type of A/C	Nationality	Nature of breach
2 November	St. Neots Cambridge-shire	1 x Tornado	RAF	Little Barford Power Station temporary avoidance area
20 December	Caerlaverock Dumfries and Galloway	4 x F15	USAF	Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust avoidance area

In cases where the nationality of the aircraft is shown as TTTE, the aircraft came from the tri-national Tornado training establishment at RAF Cottesmore which trains aircrew of the Royal Air Force, German air force and Italian air force using aircraft provided by all three nations.

Formal disciplinary action under the service discipline acts has, to date, been taken in one case. The pilot of the RAF Hawk responsible for the breach at Staple, Kent on 29 June was found guilty by general court martial of one charge, contrary to section 52 of the Air Force Act 1955, of flying an aircraft in a manner causing or likely to cause unnecessary annoyance for which he was severely reprimanded and fined. The finding and sentence are subject to confirmation.

In cases involving UK aircrew where formal disciplinary action is not appropriate, aircrew who have breached regulations may be interviewed by their station commander or other appropriate senior officer. Such action could be recorded on individual's career records and affect flying status and promotion prospects. It is not our policy to release details of such action. It is also the responsibility of senior officers to ascertain what lessons there are to be learnt from such incidents; central records are not maintained.

Reports on breaches by foreign aircrew are passed to their relevant national authorities, with whom responsibility for any further action rests.