§ Mr. SalmondTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how far limitations on the use of C17s have been compensated for by the lease of heavy lift civilian aircraft; and what the costs have been for operations in(a) Afghanistan and (b) the Balkans. [58080]
§ Mr. IngramThe sheer size of the operational deployment in Afghanistan, the lack of viable surface lines of communication into a land-locked country together with a very significant sustainment package has required the use of both the heavy lift Antonov and IL-76 civilian aircraft in parallel with the C-17, so that military and political timelines could be achieved.
The cost of heavy lift civilian aircraft for operations into Afghanistan chartered by the Ministry of Defence up to 31 May 2002 is £35 million. No such aircraft have been chartered for operations in the Balkans.