Lord Morrisasked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the safety record in the United Kingdom and abroad of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) which the Strategic Defence Review proposes are used more widely in training exercises. [HL945]
§ The Minister of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Gilbert)Currently, Phoenix is the only unmanned aerial vehicle, UAV, in service with the UK armed forces. During the development of Phoenix, there were instances where the UAV was damaged during landing, but it has always landed in designated safe areas and has never posed any significant danger to human life or property. Other unmanned land, air and sea vehicles are in the early stages of development. Safety is a key consideration in the design and operation of any piece of military equipment and full account is taken from initial development through to deployment on operations.
The MoD does not hold systematic data on the safety records of unmanned aerial vehicles operated by other countries.