Brain Potter:
Nimrod airworthiness has cost lives. These are the problems that really do require the urgent application of precious MoD resources.
The airworthiness, or lack of it, of many military aircraft involved in accidents to date leads one to wonder if the urgent application of precious resources that you speak of, BP, should be in the hands of just about anyone other than the MOD! As the UK military airworthiness authority it has reneged on its duty of care to ensure that the UK military airfleet does indeed comply with the military airworthiness regulations as highlighted in the Hercules (OK, FFP there), Nimrod and Chinook threads. From what I understand the failure is/was systemic and by extension affects all fleets, not only those that have suffered such terrible tragedies. Just as financial pressure does not excuse civil AOC holders from full compliance with CAA regulations, the same should apply to military operators. But the catch is that operator and regulator are one and the same. As with all self regulation the result is a compromised system, and in this case a deadly one. Military Airworthiness regulation needs to be removed from the MOD into a separate and independent Military Airworthiness Authority ASAP. The mess it will encounter will take years, probably decades, to put right. Yes, it will cost lots of money and we would never know for sure how much needless loss of life it prevents, but if the present arrangement continues we will only know of the loss that it could have prevented.