Pobjoy
You may find that any reluctance to reply to your letter is because an honest answer would breach the requirement for commercial confidentiality that is required by the MoD when contracts are put out to tender.
Things are moving on the contract front so the last thing needed in this sorry situation is for a company that fails to get the contract for the glider recovery program to cry foul in the courts sighting unfair treatment because an officer has revealed commercaly sensitive data before the contract process is complete.
If a company did cry foul in the courts it would result in the whole contract having to be re-run and a further delay of 6-9 months.