HC Deb 24 May 2002 vol 386 cc613-4W
Mr. Salmond

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if there are annual flying mile restraints on the leased C17s. [58133]

Mr. Ingram

Under the terms of the lease contract for the four C17 aircraft, there are no restrictions on the number of miles or hours that may be flown.

Mr. Salmond

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many C130J aircraft are on order; how many are operational; and when they will all be in service. [58154]

Mr. Ingram

A total of 25 C130J aircraft have been delivered to the Ministry of Defence and no further aircraft are on order. Twenty-three are in-service with the RAF and the remaining two are on loan to QinetiQ.

Mr. Salmond

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how far lack of availability of C17 aircraft has increased dependency on C130 Mk1 and C130 Mk3; what effect this has had on forces' training that would normally involve C130 Mk1 and C130 Mk3; and what resulting cancellations there have been in training in the last two years. [58153]

Mr. Ingram

At no point during its service to date has unavailability of the C17 contributed to an increased dependency on the operation of Hercules C130K aircraft. The high flying rate of the C17 has, in part, been as a result of attempts to relieve the workload on other aircraft, including the Hercules C130. Increased utilisation of the C130 is attributable only to the upsurge in Operational flying and would have been exacerbated had the C17 aircraft not been available.

Mr. Salmond

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what restrictions there are on the use of the leased C17s; and if these differ from restrictions imposed on the USAF in their lease of the C17. [58134]

Mr. Ingram

There are no contract restrictions on our use of the leased C17 aircraft. The C17 aircraft operated by the USAF were purchased, not leased, from Boeing.

Norman Lamb

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the current operational status and serviceability of the RAF's four leased C17A Globemaster III transport aircraft. [59278]

Mr. Ingram

There are four C17 aircraft in operational service with the RAF, which provide an outsize strategic airlift capability and supplement the existing air transport capability. On 22 May 2002, three of the four aircraft were fully serviceable and conducting operations. One aircraft was undergoing routine pre-planned maintenance. Since the arrival of the C17 into RAF service, it has consistently performed above expectations, while its serviceability record has been comparable with that of the Hercules fleet.

Mr. Keetch

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many C17 transport aircraft are(a) fully serviceable and (b) unserviceable; and if he will make a statement. [59232]

Mr. Ingram

On 22 May, three C17 aircraft were fully serviceable and one C17 aircraft was undergoing pre-planned routine maintenance.