§ Lord Marshasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many flights by gliders, self-powered, with tugs or launched by catapult have taken place from RAF Little Rissington in each of the last five years; 128WA and what is the estimated number of similar flights for each of the next five years. [HL2387]
§ Baroness Symons of Vernham DeanRecords are not retained at RAF Little Rissington for longer than one year. The number of launches in 1999 was 4,232, all of which were by the Air Cadet Volunteer Gliding School using self-propelled gliders. The level of activity in previous years would have been at the same level and the Air Cadet Volunteer Gliding School plans to continue at this level for the next five years. The RAF is considering a proposal to allow the RAF Gliding and Soaring Association's Bicester Gliding Club and the Joint Service Adventurous Training (Gliding) Centre, both currently based at Bicester, to relocate to RAF Little Rissington The annual flying activity of JSAT(G) is estimated in the region of 4,500 aerotow launches and 300 self-propelled flights during weekdays. A further 9,000 winch launches and 900 aerotug launches would be made by the RAFGSA, which operates seven days a week during the period of March to the end of October.