Rishi Sunak ‘personally intervened to save his RAF helicopter trips’

Government U-turn at PM’s request prompted ‘frenetic’ scramble, air force reveals

Rishi Sunak personally intervened to prevent the RAF scrapping a £40m helicopter contract that allows him to take short hops around the UK.

Over the summer the Ministry of Defence announced plans to stop renting two private choppers used by the prime minister and others.

The decision followed criticism over his use of the aircraft for short trips, including flying from London to Southampton, a journey that would have taken an hour and 15 minutes by train and cost £30 return.

But the new defence secretary Grant Shapps has performed a U-turn – at Sunak’s request, the Royal Air Force has revealed.

Writing in the RAF's in-house magazine, Northolt Approach, Tom Woods, the leader of No 32 Squadron, said: "In mid-September 23, the new secretary of state for defence, the Rt Hon Grant Shapps, reversed the decision at the request of the prime minister."

This prompted “frenetic activity” to ensure that the service could continue, he added.

He also suggested that when the temporary contract ends a new tender would be set out for a permanent replacement, thought to be a five-year deal worth £30m - £40m.

The prime minister’s official spokesman has previously defended the use of a helicopter for publicly funded trips and said that they were the "most effective use of his time".

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak intervened to keep his helicopter trips despite public outcry (PA)

Figures show Mr Sunak has taken a taxpayer-funded private flight for travel in the UK once every eight days since he secured the keys to No 10.

The data shows he had already used RAF jets and helicopters for domestic journeys more frequently than any recent prime minister – after just seven months in office.

He boarded 23 domestic flights on RAF jets and helicopters aircraft across 187 days, almost one flight a week on average.

The frequency of his taxpayer-funded jaunts around Britain outstrips his immediate predecessors, Liz Truss, Boris Johnson and Theresa May.

An MoD spokesperson said: “Domestic flights allow ministers to visit more parts of the UK in the time available... and reduce the need for overnight accommodation for ministers and accompanying staff. Security considerations are also taken into account.”