In today’s defence-related coverage there are further articles about military awards, support for Lord Bramall and articles about legal activity around historical allegations from operations in Iraq.
Military Awards
The Sun carries a further article on the Sun Military awards today, profiling a British Army Major who was successful in the most outstanding soldier category after helping to save 116 people in an avalanche on Mount Everest following the earthquake in Nepal last year. Read our article about the event here.
Iraq allegations
As coverage continues around legal action against British troops who served in Iraq, The Observer carries an opinion piece arguing that nobody should be above the law. The Sun writes in a column that 57 out of 58 allegations of unlawful killing made by lawyers had been dismissed by the Iraq abuse enquiry, and that the 58th case was dropped by the prosecution.
Lord Bramall
The Sunday Telegraph and The Sunday Times report that the accuser of Lord Bramall’s sexual abuse investigation could be investigated for wasting police time. Both articles carries words from the Defence Secretary saying that Lord Bramall is owed a proper apology for a case that he is quoted as saying 'clearly was badly handled'.
Land release
The Mail on Sunday follows up the MOD announcement on 18 January that the department is planning to release Kneller Hall for development. The article speculates that the value of the site could be around £30m.
Our position is here. An MOD spokesperson said:
As part of an ongoing review, we are aiming to create a smaller and better Defence estate that effectively supports our Armed Forces. By relocating the Royal Military School of Music to another military establishment we will maintain our level of musical training and release funds to help keep Britain safe.
F35 ejector seats
The Sunday People claims in a report that an issue with the F-35's ejector seat means the jets can only be used by heavier pilots.
In an answer in parliament, Minister of State for Defence Procurement Philip Dunne said:
A temporary weight restriction has been imposed for UK pilots, which does not constrain flight operations at this time. A range of design solutions are being developed and these are expected to be in place before the aircraft enters service in the UK.
An MOD spokesperson added:
There are no UK F-35 pilots affected by this issue and we do not anticipate any impact on national flying operations while this seat development issue is resolved. “The safety of our personnel remains of paramount importance.
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