Thanks for sight of your letter InFin,
As usual, there are several areas which can easily be challenged. Despite all the explanations, Mr Ingram still misses the point of absolutely no doubt whatsoever.
Surely the MoD must realise the damage this whole injustice is doing to the morale of the RAF. Perhaps they simply don't care about our servicemen and women?
Anyway, below is the letter sent to InFin's MP. See what you think.
MoD HEADED PAPER dated 24 October 2002
Dear (MP),
Thank you for your letter of 10 October (reference: xxx) to Geoff Hoon, enclosing an e-mail from your constituent, Mr InFin of (home address), about the Mull of Kintyre Chinook accident. I am replying as this matter falls within my area of responsibility as Minister of State for the Armed Forces.
I can assure you that there has been no “cover up” regarding this accident as (InFin) suggests. This Government, as previous administrations, has been entirely open about this tragic accident. As you will doubtless be aware, we have responded fully to the report of the House of Lords Select Committee Report on Chinook ZD576. Indeed, before the statements in both Houses on 22July, explaining why the Government was unable to support the Select Committee’s conclusions, all the complex technical and legal issues, including airmanship issues raised in the Committee’s report were examined fully.
The Committee’s report included several references to the original Boeing work undertaken to assist the RAF Board of Inquiry. The Reviewing Officers’ judgement did not rely on Boeing’s original work and neither does our consideration of the Committee’s report and determination of the cause of the accident. Nevertheless it was important that we brought the Committee’s comments to the Company’s attention and ask for clarification. We also asked Boeing to review their original flight profile analysis to include a full FADEC simulation.
As we made clear in our statements, the only explanation that fits all the known and agreed facts is the conclusion reached by the Boards of Inquiry: that the pilots flew the aircraft at high speed, low, in contravention of visual flight rules into the Mull.
(InFin) takes issue with our view that negligence can operate either alone or in conjunction with other factors to cause an accident. However I am sure he would, for example, accept that a motorist who drives too fast along a suburban street and crashes his car is negligent, even if his brakes failed and this contributed to the accident. In the case of the Mull accident, the standard of proof required the Reviewing Officers to be in no doubt whatsoever that the pilots was a cause of the accident, but not necessarily the sole cause.
This issue is covered in detail in section six of our response to the Select Committee report, and you may be interested to see our full response which can be found on the internet at:
http://www.mod.uk/linked_files/publi...k_response.pdf
(InFin) also mentions Sir Malcolm Rifkind’s apparent change of heart about the Board of Inquiry findings. Geoff Hoon has discussed Sir Malcolm’s concerns with him and Sir Malcolm has said that he did not want to see the technical aspects of the case. This was because the issues were ruled out as possible causes by the RAF Board of Inquiry. Geoff Hoon and myself have been briefed fully about all the issues relating to the accident, including the technical history of the Chinook Mk2. We have both reviewed , in depth, all the evidence, and are satisfied that technical issues have no relevance to the cause of the Mull of Kintyre Crash.
Finally (InFin) touches on the possibility of Judicial Review. I suggest that it would be appropriate to await the debate scheduled for the Lords on 5 November and any further discussion in the Commons, before addressing such issues. In any event, in the absence of any new evidence, it cannot be right to disturb the findings of a carefully thought thorough Board of Inquiry finding.
I hope this explains the position.
Signed – The Rt Hon Adam Ingram MP
Feel free to write and let him know if you disagree.
My regards, as always
Brian
"Justice has no expiry date" - John Cook