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Nimrod downed by 'design fault' | |
(about 4 hours later) | |
The explosion which downed a spy plane in Afghanistan killing 14 servicemen on board was due to a "fundamental design fault" an inquest has heard. | |
The coroner had before heard it was because fuel leaked into a dry bay and ignited on contact with a hot air pipe. | |
But on Tuesday, a senior RAF officer said a mistake was made during a hazard assessment of the Nimrod which could have identified that risk. | |
It exploded minutes after refuelling in Afghanistan in September 2006. | |
Hindsight on hazard | |
Air Commodore George Baber told the inquest at Oxford Coroners Court that had they known then what they knew now, the Nimrod would not have been passed as safe to fly. | |
He led an Integrated Project Team (IPT), who with BAE systems carried out a comprehensive hazard analysis of the plane. | |
We failed to catch that the design flaw. The consequences were catastrophic Air CommodoreGeorge Baber | |
When hazards were identified and categorised at a meeting in August 2004, he said, the possibility of an explosion in the dry bay was graded in as "improbable". | |
It should have been graded higher and warranted further action, he admitted. | |
The design flaw was to have fuel in the same compartment as a hot air pipe, he said. | |
He told the inquest: "At the heart of this was a fundamental design flaw. This hazard assessment process was an opportunity to catch any inherent design flaw. | |
"We failed to catch that design flaw. The consequences were catastrophic and that is why we are here today." | |
He described the categorising mistake as a "failure". | |
Buck stopped | |
Asked by Michael Rawlinson, the lawyer representing the families of the dead servicemen, whether the Nimrod was safe to fly, Air Commodore Baber answered: "I find it difficult to answer because the simple answer is 'no' because we had an accident. | |
"Any aircraft we fly carry hazards all the time. Clearly if we knew then what we know now we would not have flown the aircraft." | |
As head of the IPT, he said he was responsible for deciding whether the aircraft was airworthy and the buck stopped with him. | |
The men died when a 37-year-old Nimrod exploded after undergoing air-to-air refuelling near Kandahar on September 2, 2006. | |
The crew on Nimrod XV230 had no means of tackling the initial fire and were forced to attempt an emergency descent to the air base. But it exploded into flames at 3,000ft. | |
Plane grounded | |
Earlier, the coroner heard how a technical problem grounded an RAF Nimrod plane due to be shown as part of the inquest. | |
Relatives were to view the plane but a hydraulic problem meant a second plane had to be shown at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, last week. | |
The Nimrod and most of the crew had been based at RAF Kinloss, in Moray. | The Nimrod and most of the crew had been based at RAF Kinloss, in Moray. |
The 14 men killed were: | The 14 men killed were: |
Flight Lieutenant Steven Johnson, 38, from Collingham, Nottinghamshire, Flt Lt Leigh Anthony Mitchelmore, 28, from Bournemouth, Dorset, Flt Lt Gareth Rodney Nicholas, 40, from Redruth, Cornwall, Flt Lt Allan James Squires, 39, from Clatterbridge, Merseyside and Flt Lt Steven Swarbrick, 28, from Liverpool. | Flight Lieutenant Steven Johnson, 38, from Collingham, Nottinghamshire, Flt Lt Leigh Anthony Mitchelmore, 28, from Bournemouth, Dorset, Flt Lt Gareth Rodney Nicholas, 40, from Redruth, Cornwall, Flt Lt Allan James Squires, 39, from Clatterbridge, Merseyside and Flt Lt Steven Swarbrick, 28, from Liverpool. |
Also Flight Sergeant Gary Wayne Andrews, 48, from Tankerton, Kent, Flt Sgt Stephen Beattie, 42, from Dundee, Flt Sgt Gerard Martin Bell, 48, from Newport, Shropshire, and Flt Sgt Adrian Davies, 49, from Amersham, Buckinghamshire, Sergeant Benjamin James Knight, 25, from Bridgwater, Sgt John Joseph Langton, 29,from Liverpool and Sgt Gary Paul Quilliam, 42, from Manchester. | Also Flight Sergeant Gary Wayne Andrews, 48, from Tankerton, Kent, Flt Sgt Stephen Beattie, 42, from Dundee, Flt Sgt Gerard Martin Bell, 48, from Newport, Shropshire, and Flt Sgt Adrian Davies, 49, from Amersham, Buckinghamshire, Sergeant Benjamin James Knight, 25, from Bridgwater, Sgt John Joseph Langton, 29,from Liverpool and Sgt Gary Paul Quilliam, 42, from Manchester. |
Lance Corporal Oliver Simon Dicketts, of the Parachute Regiment, from Wadhurst, East Sussex, and Royal Marine Joseph David Windall, 22, from Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire, also died. | Lance Corporal Oliver Simon Dicketts, of the Parachute Regiment, from Wadhurst, East Sussex, and Royal Marine Joseph David Windall, 22, from Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire, also died. |
The inquest continues. | The inquest continues. |