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Nimrod Aircraft
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made on the Nimrod MRA4 project against the original timetable for work; what effect the time taken on the project has had on the future of the Nimrod MRA4 trainer facility in Kinloss; and if he will make a statement. [149571]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The current forecast In Service date for Nimrod MRA4 is 2010 against an original expectation of 2003 when the contract was let in 1996. The MRA4 training facility has been developed concurrently with the aircraft; the extended development programme for the aircraft has allowed risk to be removed from the training facility development programme through more extensive testing being conducted on site at RAF Kinloss by BAE Systems, assisted by the MOD.
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what problems have been encountered with
(a) the software and
(b) operation of the MRA4 trainer facility at Kinloss; and if he will make a statement. [149572]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The Nimrod MRA4 training facility is currently in the design and development phase. It is a sophisticated system which will provide training for aircrew and groundcrew operating one of the most complex weapon systems in the RAF. The recent, extensive, post-commissioning testing has, as intended, identified anomalies in the software which integrates the numerous and complex systems that make up the simulators. These have been addressed and the corrective actions will be consolidated during the planned upgrade of the simulators to the production delivery standard.
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the lifetime budget is for the MRA4 trainer at Kinloss. [149573]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The Nimrod MRA4 training facility does not have a separate budget. The costs of development and production of the facility form part of the prime contract with BAE Systems for the provision of the overall Nimrod MRA4 weapon system. The costs of the operation and maintenance of the training facility will form part of the contract for the future support of the weapon system, which has yet to be negotiated.
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions departmental Ministers have had with BAE Systems on progress on the MRA4 trainer; and when such discussions took place. [149575]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: There have been no specific discussions between departmental Ministers and BAE Systems over progress on the Nimrod MRA4 training facility.
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much has been spent from the public purse on the development of the Nimrod MRA4 since his announcement of the decision to procure the aircraft. [149576]
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Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Total design and development costs for Nimrod MRA4 to date are some £1.73 billion of which about £215 million has been incurred since the production contract was signed in July 2006.
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the running costs of the Nimrod MRA4 trainers at Kinloss have been since the project commenced. [149580]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The Nimrod MRA4 training facility is currently in the design and development phase, the costs of which form part of the contract with BAE Systems for the provision of the overall Nimrod MRA4 weapon system. Contractual arrangements for operating and maintaining the training system have therefore yet to be negotiated.
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the length is of the contract with BAE Systems for the Nimrod MRA4 trainer at Kinloss; and what contractual provisions are in place to deal with the circumstances where the system does not work. [149582]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The development and production of the Nimrod MRA4 training facility forms part of the prime contract with BAE Systems for the overall Nimrod MRA4 weapon system. The contract requires the training system to replicate the standard of the first production aircraft and it will only be contractually accepted by MOD when it has successfully completed extensive testing to prove that it will function appropriately. The contract contains default provisions which could be implemented if the system did not meet the contractual requirement. Contractual arrangements for the operation and maintenance of the training facility have yet to be negotiated.
Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he has allocated further funds to the Nimrod MRA4 trainer facility at Kinloss to assist its development and against contingencies. [149583]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: Development and production of the Nimrod MRA4 training facility forms part of the overall prime contract with BAE Systems for provision of the overall Nimrod MRA4 weapon system and will be funded from the provision made for that contract. No additional funding has been allocated to that contract as a contingency provision for the training system.
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