Brian Dixon

Only mentions me, BEags. I have one or two friends who can write too

I aim to remain the Irritating Sod for as long as is necessary!

Regards as always,
Brian

"Justice has no expiry date" - John Cook

Brian Dixon

Just a reminder (as if it is needed), that the terrible accident took place 13 years ago today.

May all who were lost on that day, never be forgotten.

Flt Lt Jonathan Tapper
Flt Lt Richard Cook
MALM Graham Forbes
Sgt Kevin Hardie
Asst Chief Constable Brian Fitzsimons
Det Chief Superintendant Desmond Conroy
Det Chief Superintendant Maurice Reilly
Det Superintendant Philip Davidson
Det Superintendant Robert Foster
Det Superintendant Billy Gwilliam
Det Superintendant Ian Phoenix
Det Chief Inspector Denis Bunting
Det Inspector Stephen Davidson
Det Inspector Kevin Magee
John Deverill
Colonel Chrostopher Biles OBE
Lt. Colonel Richard Gregory-Smith
Lt. Colonel John Tobias
Lt. Colonel George Williams
Major Christopher Docherty
Major Anthony Hornby
Major Gary Sparks
Major Richard Allen
Major Roy Pugh
Anne James
Martin Dalton
John Haynes
Michael Maltby
Stephen Rickard

RIP

airsound

Thank you for the salutary reminder, Brian.

I come fresh from the amazing news about Mr Pun VC and his imminent arrival in Britain - which event perhaps tells us that governments are not immune to people power.

All the best, and my salaams for your enduring irritatingness

airsound

edited to spell Brian right

Chugalug2

A timely reminder indeed. A terrible accident, as you say Brian, and a terrible waste of life compounded by a terrible injustice. The waste is only to be mourned, but the injustice can and will be righted. As Airsound says the people who stand in the way of that will be overwhelmed by the same people power that erupted on the hapless Mr Byrne!

Let right be done.

RUCAWO

We will remember them.

Brian Dixon

Hi everyone,
over the past month or so, I have been contacted by those wondering why there has not been much information being posted about the Campaign. As I have said, we have been collating information, and documentation, with a view to presenting a final product to those in a position to bring about a change to the disgraceful verdict. I have also said that, with regret, we will not be in a position to place this current information in the public domain at this time. The reason behind this is not because of any 'power' thing, but because we do not want those we aim to speak to, to get a hint as to what we have uncovered until we give them the completed final document. It currently runs to several pages.

I can only apologise to those who are waiting to hear what we have been up to. I promise that as soon as I can 'go public' I will.

As an aside, you may also remember that, on the personal instructions of the then Secretary of State for Defence (Dr Reid), I am no longer allowed to apply for information using the Freedom of Information Act. At the time of my 'ban' I still had thirteen separate requests outstanding. So, applying the rules of my letter, I replied to the MoD on 17 May 07 stating that I was not making a new request, but would like sight of those documents I currently have outstanding. I was assured that the documents I seek could not be found, but would be provided if they were ever located Thought they'd give me a little more credit than that.

The outstanding documents are:
1. The letter written to Boscombe Down by the AoC, following Boscombe's decision to stop the Chinook HC2 flight trials.

2. The report by EDS Scicon following their tasking to verify the FADEC software.

3. A copy of the report from Boscombe Down to EDS Scicon.

4. A list of discounts made against further contracts with Textron Lycoming and Boeing.

5. Documentation relating to the fist suspension of flight trials by Boscombe Down.

6. A copy of ACM Wratten's document, Disciplinary Proceedings in Aircraft Accidents (Hint: There's a copy in the House of Lords Library)

7. A copy of a memo written, in 1995, by a member of Hels 2

8. A copy of the MoD (PE) unit report for the Wilmington Chinook incident.

9. 3rd & 4th Line engineering reports on the engine changes to Chinook HC2 ZD576 in early May 1994.

10. 3rd & 4th Line engineering reports on the GPS changes to Chinook HC2 ZD576 in early May 1994.

11. There was a mention in the House of Lords' Select Committee hearings that Air Marshal Day made his own analysis of the accident. Was that analysis included in any BoI paperwork?

12. A copy of the engineering report SI/CHINOOK/60, dated 23 June 1994, relating to flying control pallet threaded insert de-bonding.

13. Copies of all briefings given to AoC 1Gp during the course of the Chinook BoI (including copies of any minutes of said meeting).

Provision of these documents will certainly be useful, so I hope that the MoD are still looking. Once I hear from them, I shall let you all know the outcome. I do, however, feel a letter to the Information Ombudsman may be looming!

Can I thank you all for your continued support and patience. We are still extremely busy behind the scenes, and I will provide updates as and when able. PPRuNe Towers has kindly allowed the thread to remain a 'sticky' desipte the public inactivity. Once our document lands on it's intended desk, I will expect the thread to become busy once again. Please bear with us.

My best, as always.
Brian

"Justice has no expiry date" - John Cook

Willi B

With the advent of the unelected Gordon Brown as PM (and his Minister for Defence Mr Browne), why not re-submit your request?

I heard Mr Brown on the BBC World Service, after his return from the Windsor town house, promising all manner of change. Here's a golden opportunity to put him to the test.

CarltonBrowne the FO

Is there any prospect for action in the fact that the current PM may have more respect for the findings of a Scottish FAI than either of his two predecessors? I say two because, for all her faults, Baroness Thatcher had rather more respect for the Armed Forces...

Willi B

If memory serves me correctly, Gordon Brown was promising a new openness and transparency in Government. Why not put him to the test?

An Teallach

Brian

Good luck with getting the current requests through. As you are subject to a personal ban, I suspect there would be no shortage of volunteers to act as sockpuppet Thrushes to make future requests on your behalf. I'd be happy to volunteer.

tucumseh

Regarding the list of documents Brian seeks, I applaud his persistence.

By definition, we are talking about a period from, approximately, 1991 to 1997; give or take. The MoD has a nasty habit, and it is quite deliberate, of answering in the present tense. Typically, “The Chinook IPT has no record……” or similar.

But the Chinook IPT did not exist until the late 90s. I’d hazard a guess that they seldom reply “The MoD has no record…” I’d also guess they make no attempt whatsoever to track down either the people or files from the previous departments. (They probably don’t even know them). Here’s a few to start with:


Directorate Helicopter Projects (aircraft and HQ Mods Committee)
Directorate Air Radio and various iterations before being subsumed into AMSO (avionics/simulators and HQ Mods Committee)
Directorate Military Aircraft Projects (equipment HQ Mods Committee Secretariat records)
Directorate Military Communications Projects
ALS/PD (central authority for maintaining safety airworthiness of equipment – no stovepiping in those days)
DD/Avionics (RAF) – (who took over responsibility for avionic safety and airworthiness, but declared it a waste of money and didn’t fund it).
Defence Helicopter Support Authority


DHP and DHSA, especially, would have held almost all what Brian seeks. It is inconceivable that Boscombe threw out their records. The relevant Design Authorities/Custodians would have their copies. If they don’t, it’s a breach of contract. If they don’t have a contract, how is the build standard, safety, and configuration control etc maintained? If a contract existed, and was cancelled (see DD/Avionics above), what happened to the records? Most companies would submit a bill for storage. Not just the aircraft DA, but the DAs for all the equipment. There should be multiple copies of most of this. On more than one occasion, the supposed “Authority” has denied the existence of records, only for me to ask a DA for access to his archives and find the info in minutes. One such system is, I believe, fitted to Chinook.

Also, the numerous reorganisations over the last 20 years have provided a God sent opportunity to destroy embarrassing records on the pretense of creating space. The move to Abbey Wood and transfer to DHSA were classic examples. Those with previous experience hid their files until they could get them scanned.

Any admission, or claim, that some of this doesn’t exist or can’t be found, is prima facie evidence of the lack of an airworthiness audit trail. (The SI in particular. Odiham, Fleetlands, St Athan, Llangennech, ATP, anyone?). This, of course, has never been in doubt.

Willi B

tucumseh

Good post. If what you say is true, then surely there's grounds for an independent inquiry with powers to demand the production of documents.

Doesn't the UK have a Tribunal that deals with FOI matters?

tucumseh

Willi B


It's true. Can't bring myself to deal in rumours, just verifiable facts with the hard copy to back me up.


Information Commissioner's Office.

http://www.ico.gov.uk/tools_and_reso...n_notices.aspx


While few comment on my posts, it won't have escaped you that if the MoD can continue to have the gall to deny the existence of these critical documents, refuse to release them or pretend they have looked for them, one can only wonder what they failed to make available to BOIs and Coroners' Inquests. What, you don't think that happens? Like I say, verifiable facts.

walter kennedy

Tucumse
Good stuff

Chugalug2

Few comment Tuc, but many read! Your detailed knowledge and experience of the mandarins and their ways is, I suspect, unique as far as the rest of PPRune is concerned. What you are able to tell us is invariably pertinent and revealing. Dare I say it is also usually difficult to grasp, or at least I find it so. Not your fault, but because of the deliberately labyrinthine nature of the beast. I subscribe to Computer Active magazine, proud holders of the "Plain English" award, in which all abbreviations, initials and "techno babble" are explained in clear in the margin. Too much I suspect to hope that could happen here, but please keep posting and we'll keep trying to follow. So much of the Chinook, Nimrod and Herc sagas come down in the end not to the aircraft, their engineers or aircrews but to anonymous people in offices identified only by cryptic initials which are frequently altered. That is where the search must be concentrated, and you are the one to suggest where that is. Please continue to do so.

Brian Dixon

Thanks, as always, to everyone for their posts. Some very useful guidance there!

In order to present a balanced argument with regards my correspondence with the MoD, I received the following letter this morning:

Dear Mr Dixon,
Thank you for your letter of 17 May 2007.

I note that you are disappointed that the Secretary of State has considered that the standard cost compliance test should be made to any future FOI requests that you make. This test is a standard applied across Government departments and ensures that all requests are considered equally in respect of cost of providing the information sought. Information requested under the FOI arrangements will, of course, be made available to you providing it can be provided within the standard cost. There is absolutely no intention to withhold information lawfully requested under the Freedom of Information. The Secretary of State has previously advised you on several occasions that the Government retains every confidence in the judgement of the Reviewing Officers but remains prepared to review its position should any compelling new factual evidence be brought forward.

I have not yet completed a review of all the files held by Boscombe Down. I expect to complete this next week and I will then let you have a full response on the points you have raised.

Yours sincerely......

I'm happy to go on record to express my thanks to the chap at the MoD for his letter, and for his clarification of whether or not I may continue to be an Irritating Sod. I'm happy to report that I intend to remain so, for as long as is necessary.

What would be useful, would be a copy of the 800+ page spreadsheet that the MoD has, listing all documentation held in relation to the crash. Sadly, that fails the compliance test. I even tried the 'request by instalments' method, but failed there too!

As always, I am grateful for your continued support. Updates as and when.

Regards,
Brian

"Justice has no expiry date" - John Cook

BEagle

As ever, Brian, your tenacious perseverance serves as an example to us all.

I still have David Cameron's signed response stating what he will do when he takes over as PM after Golden Brown gets the boot!

Good luck!!

Chugalug2

Brian, you really are becoming very exceedingly irritating! Well done, I suspect that there are those on the "other side" that are silently cheering you on, while we on this side may do so openly. This can of worms will rival the "Dreyfus" case when the full scandal is finally revealed. If then the necessary reforms in the RAF and MOD are instituted, much good will have been salvaged from this travesty of "service justice". The shame however will remain.

Let Right Be Done!

wokawoka

Dear Brian,
I have been following your action quite intensivley for the last years though never have posted as evertything has already been said. I am as you can guess from my screen name part of the "fraternity". Therefore my interest, plus the fact that I cannot stand when justice is not carried out, and in this case I am sure it has not. I won t go into the discussion of good/bad airmanship, a/c failure, pilot error etc because this is not the point of the debate. The debate is that no one can, or will ever prove beyond reasonable doubt that it was pilot error/negligence.
If the MOD is not going to play ball on some of these documents then I imagine you are stuck. Would you have enough already to initially re-open the inquiry? Because once this is done, now that you have the proof of existence of these documents, the MOD will no choice other than submit them to you as you are using them as evidence. I would not dare suggest you what to do and I m sure you have already thought of it. But to summarise if no one going to provide you with what is your right to obtain, then maybe we should shift our aim in order to achieve this.
I m currently in a sandy sh*thole. No prizes for guessing which one. I m glad to see that you are still annoying my employers. Keep on at them.
If somehow I could be of any help, let me know, though I am sure you already have plenty of moles....
Wokawoka.

Brian Dixon

Hi wokawoka,
thank you for your post.

You are correct in saying that speculation as to the cause has no place within the debate as the burden of proof required to find deceased aircrew guilty of negligence is Absolutely No Doubt Whatsoever, which is higher than beyond all reasonable doubt. Like you, I won't go over the holes in the MoD's arguments, as it's been done so often before.

Re-opening the Inquiry is something we have looked at many times in the past, but it appears that the MoD are the ones who say yes, or no, to this matter. The Campaign has been waiting to see who Gordon Brown was going to appoint as the SoS for Defence before deciding what next to do. Now we know that we've got the part-timer back, we will be implementing one of our pre-determined plans. There is a Campaign meeting scheduled for 25th July, so I hope to be able to update you further after that.

You ask if you can be of any help. Firstly, many thanks for your offer. All I would ask at this time is that you keep this injustice in the minds of those currently flying the Chinook. As new generations of aviators join the service, the Mull accident fades further into history. The matter is yet to be resolved so needs to be kept in the minds of those currently serving - especially those flying the Chinook.

I couldn't possible comment on the subject of moles!

As an aside, please give my regards to anyone with a long enough memory who remembers me. I was in the sandpit for the first spat, but don't think it was anywhere near as sh**ty as it is now.

Please keep yourself safe, and be reassured that there are a great number of people back here in the UK who support your every deed and pray for the safe return of everyone.

Kind regards,
Brian

"Justice has no expiry date" - John Cook