'Quick fix' linked to RAF crashes

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The night enhancement package was fitted to eight Chinook Mk2s to compensate for the fact that a consignment of more sophisticated Mk3s remained grounded eight years after they were delivered to the RAF in a famously "botched" procurement.

In the latest of a series of highly critical official reports on the Chinook Mk3 purchase, the Commons Public Accounts Committee said that the night enhancement package on the Mk2 was assessed as a "key safety risk" after being linked to two accidents.

In evidence to the committee, Ministry of Defence officials played down the crashes, likening them to "bending the fender on the car when you parked it".

However, the committee said: "The department should examine whether its acceptance of the risks associated with short-term fixes like the night enhancement package is consistent with the priority accorded to identifying funding for long-term solutions, the duty of care it has to personnel and the principles underpinning its approach to airworthiness."

The committee also disclosed that "scarce" Chinooks were being used for basic pilot training because computerised flight simulators had not been modified to reflect the capabilities of the aircraft currently flying in Afghanistan and Iraq, exacerbating the shortage of helicopters in theatre.

Committee chairman Edward Leigh said that the Chinook Mk3 programme had been "hamstrung from the start" with "bad decision-making to the point of irresponsibility".

The helicopters were originally ordered from manufacturer Boeing in 1995 with a modified cockpit computer system intended to cut costs. However, the MoD failed to secure access to the software source code which has meant that they have never been able to fly.

The MoD said that the problems with the Chinook Mk3 procurement were well-known and that the report contained "nothing new".

"The department has repeatedly acknowledged the problems with the initial procurement and we have changed the way we do business since these helicopters were bought," a spokesman said.