Crashed aircraft 'had been rebuilt'

A spokesman for Boeing, the makers of the crashed helicopter, said last night that he believed it was an HC Mk 2 Chinook which recently underwent an extensive modernisation programme in the United States.

If so, the aircraft would have been stripped to its air frame and equipped with a new operating system, said Jack Satterfield, a spokesman for the helicopters division of Boeing Defence & Space Group, in Philadelphia.

He also said that the Royal Air Force had taken a 'doctrinal decision' not to install weather radar on its Chinooks because it had expected the aircraft to be flown in conditions where the system would not be required.

But, he said, the helicopter can be flown using a variety of other navigational devices to determine its height and position - including radar altimeters, radio beacon tracking systems, and under the control of local air traffic controllers on the ground.

'Boeing has absolutely no idea what has occurred with respect to this incident,' he said.

'We do not know and we cannot speculate. But we will, at the request of the RAF, co-operate fully and provide whatever assistance we can regarding an accident investigation. We will respond to any request for assistance from whatever agency has cognisance over the accident.'

He said the RAF's fleet of more than 30 Chinooks is in the middle of a modernising process in which HC Mk 1 aircraft which are 10 years old or more are being upgraded to Mk 2s to extend their operating life.

Thirteen Mk 2s, which are used for troop and cargo transport, were delivered by Boeing to the RAF this month.

'If it is a Mk 2, then it had a complete modernisation here, which would have essentially made it a new aircraft.

'It is very extensive and takes approximately one year. We strip the air frame to the frame itself and replace and repair any worn or damaged material. A new operating system is fitted,' he said.