RAF Hercules fleet under strain

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The National Audit Office disclosed that over the past two years, nine of the older Hercules C-130K's have had to be taken out of service early due to wing "fatigue".

With the new European Airbus A400M unlikely to enter service before the end of 2011 - two years behind schedule - the NAO said there were now "significant risks" that the RAF would not have enough transport aircraft for future operations.

It warned that the Ministry of Defence needed to make urgent decisions in order to avoid a potential shortfall in capacity after 2010.

The Hercules is the essential "workhorse" of the Iraq and Afghanistan missions, transporting troops, vehicles and equipment around the theatre of operations.

The NAO praised the MoD for managing to keep at least 85% of the fleet operational in Iraq and Afghanistan - far higher than would normally be expected. However, it said, such a performance had come at a price. The high tempo of take-offs and landings - often on rough, unmade, desert airstrips - has taken its toll on wings, airframes and propellers.

In addition to the nine aircraft that have been "retired", a further four have been lost on operations, while five more C-130K's are due to be taken out of service in 2010. The remaining nine C-130Ks have undergone a £15.3 million refit - including fitting new wings to five of them - to enable them to keep flying to 2012 in order to help cover for the delay to the A400M.

However the NAO said that even the newer C-130Js were showing the effects of operating in such a harsh environment with a number of aircraft likely to need their wings replaced or refurbished from 2012.

Edward Leigh, the chairman of the Commons Public Accounts Committee which oversees the work of the NAO, said that it was essential that the MoD got to grips with the problem.

The MoD, however, insisted that the planned in-Service Date for the A400M was "still within the required timeframe to manage a smooth replacement of the Hercules".