RAF 'knew of fuel leak that was to kill my son'

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The father of one of the men who died yesterday accused the Ministry of Defence and RAF of being "negligent" and responsible for "killing" his son.

Sgt Ben Knight, 25, died when the Nimrod surveillance plane he was travelling on exploded 12 miles west of Kandahar in September 2006.

His father, Graham Knight, said he had "leaked emails" from officers detailing problems with the Nimrod.

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The RAF Nimrod spy plane: Graham Knight says that the RAF knew the aircraft had technical problems

Mr Knight, 55, said: "I have evidence that a fuel leak caused the crash and the service was fully aware of the risks months beforehand. I believe the RAF killed my son."

The families of the dead have been in "limbo" as they await a Board of Inquiry report, said Mr Knight of Bridgwater, Somerset, who used the Freedom of Information Act to investigate the crash.

Last night, the Ministry of Defence issued a statement in which they said that if they "didn't have confidence in the aircraft, we would not continue to fly them".