By IRNA,
London : Britain is temporarily deploying more Merlin helicopter to Iraq to free up Sea Kings for Afghanistan as part of a rationalization of the support given to troops in both theaters due to shortages, Defence Secretary Des Browne has announced.
“We have completed the process of consolidating our medium and heavy fleets across the two theaters, with Merlin and Puma in Iraq, and Chinook and Sea King in Afghanistan,” Browne told MPs in a written statement published Wednesday.
He said he had approved the decision to commit the Merlin fleet to Iraq, “to support our continuing efforts to train and mentor the Iraqi army, and maintaining the ability to re-intervene in extreme circumstances.”
The defence secretary announced plans to deploy a further two Merlin to Iraq but that in the longer term, the intentions were to also switch them to Afghanistan.
The drawdown in Iraq, he said, has enabled the removal of the Sea King from Iraq and to deploy them in Afghanistan, after fitting them with “new, state-of-the-art main and tail rotor blades to deliver improved performance in hot and high conditions.”
The rationalization comes after a survey last year found that a third of Britain’s Chinook transport aircraft were grounded whilst only around half of the ageing Sea King helicopters and the newer Merlin MK3 support choppers were operational.
Figures obtained by the opposition Conservative Party previously showed that out of a fleet of 40 Chinooks, only 17 are “fit for purpose”, while 20 out of 60 new Merlin were fully operational and only 25 Apache attack helicopters, about a third, were functioning.
The decision to deploy each helicopter type in only one operational theater at any time allows us to “rationalize our logistics and support arrangements,” Browne said.
“Concurrent deployment of a single type in both theaters increases the pressure on crews and supervisory staff, with implications for our ability to train them effectively between deployments,” he told MPs.
The shortage of helicopters forced Britain to purchase six Merlins from Denmark and modifying eight Chinook HC3 helicopters to a support role that has helped to pave the way for the rationalization.
The Chinook is the UK support helicopter “best suited to the demanding hot and high conditions in Afghanistan,” the defence secretary said.
“In relation to Apache in Afghanistan, we are clear about the importance of ensuring that we maximize this proven battle winning capability,” he also said.
In his parliamentary statement, Browne said that he was trying to address concerns but that the detail supplied was “within the constraints of operational security.”