§ Andrew GeorgeTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Royal Navy Merlin helicopters have been involved in accidents which were(a) insufficient and (b) sufficient to put them out of service. [174865]
§ Mr. IngramMerlin helicopters have been involved in two accidents, both of which were sufficient to put the aircraft out of service. Merlin flights have been halted pending further investigations.
§ Andrew GeorgeTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the lessons learned from the accident investigations and other inquiries into(a) operational failures, (b) accidents and (c) equipment malfunctions of the Royal Navy Merlin helicopter. [174866]
§ Mr. IngramFollowing the Merlin accident at RNAS Culdrose on 30 March 2004, a Service Board of Inquiry and a technical investigation by the Royal Navy Flight Safety and Air Accident Investigation Centre have been commissioned. Neither has yet reported. The Military Air Accident Summary for the Merlin crash near the Kyle of Lochalsh on 29 October 2000 was placed in the Library of the House in June 2002.