§ Lord Astor of Heverasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the Royal Air Force is satisfied with the result of the maiden flight of the upgraded Nimrod Maritime Reconnaissance aircraft; and whether the further stages of the project will proceed without delays. [HL4201]
§ Lord BachThe flight test crew reported that the maiden flight of the Nimrod MRA4 was successfully completed to expectation without incident. While this flight was a significant milestone there is still an extensive trials programme to complete during the rest of the design and development stage. Commitment to production is dependent on acceptable design maturity and agreement of an acceptable price.