§ Mr. GrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the Sea Harrier ferry will leave Yeovilton; what discussions he has had with the RAF Association about the move; what the overall cost of the move will be; and how many Sea Harrier pilots resigned their commissions in(a) 2001, (b), 2000, (c) 1999, (d) 1998, (e), 1997 and (f) 1996. [13422]
§ Mr. Ingram[holding answer 8 November 2001]: Following the strategic defence review, the Sea Harrier force is scheduled to relocate to RAF Cottesmore and RAF Wittering in the second half of 2003. The Ministry of Defence has had no discussions with the RAF Association about the move. The cost of the move is estimated to be approximately £21.5 million. The number of Sea Harrier pilots who have taken premature voluntary retirement (PVR) are set out in the table:
434W
Year Premature Voluntary Retirement (PVR)
1996 5 1997 2 1998 2 1999 6 2000 4 2001 4