§ Mr. GrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of flying hours were lost at(a) Lyneham and (b) Brize Norton in each of the last five years on account of (i) ice, (ii) fog and (iii) wind. [26625]
§ Mr. IngramFlying hours are not generally lost due to bad weather, as postponed flights will usually take place on a subsequent occasion. However weather conditions at RAF stations are assessed on an approximately hourly basis. Table 1 shows the percentage of occasions where weather conditions were assessed as 'red', ie the most severe conditions in terms of visibility and cloud cover. Table 2 shows the percentage of occasions when gusts of over 30 knots were registered. Not all flights are necessarily postponed in these conditions.
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Table 1 RAF Brize Norton RAF Lyneham 1997 3.96 4.71 1998 1.72 2.52 1999 1.36 2.29 2000 1.46 2.32 2001 2.34 3.01 Average 2.17 2.97
Table 2 RAF Brize Norton RAF Lyneham 1997 3.05 3.75 1998 2.07 3.60 1999 2.22 3.79 2000 2.27 4.02 2001 0.84 1.92 Average 2.09 3.41
§ Mr. GrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will estimate how many aircraft movements take place on an annual basis at(a) RAF Lyneham and (b) RAF Brize Norton; and how many of them were (i) in daylight and (ii) at night. [26626]
§ Mr. IngramThe number of aircraft movements undertaken at RAF Lyneham was approximately 36,000 during 2001 and at RAF Brize Norton 33,000. About 9 per cent. of these movements were undertaken at night.