Long wait for Chinook crash answers 'harrowing'- Norfolk campaigner
Nicola Rawcliffe's brother Major Chris Dockerty was one of 29 killed on June 2nd 1994
A woman in the county who lost one of her brothers in a Chinook helicopter crash tells us that waiting decades for answers has been 'harrowing'
Major Chris Dockerty was one of 29 killed on June 2nd 1994 in this accident that took place in the Mull of Kintyre, Scotland.
Families of those killed during this have published 225 new unanswered questions- ahead of their first meeting with Ministers in 31 years, tomorrow.
Campaigners say these focus on "safety critical questions on the circumstances leading up to the crash".
This take the total number of 'unanswered questions' up to 335.
A petition on this has been signed by over 50 thousand people
-A judge-led public inquiry into what happened
-For all documents related to this to be released immediately
-For all public bodies to operate under a legal ‘Duty of Candour’, so that no family ever has to "battle for the truth again".
""Her attendance is something that we really welcome"
Chris' sister Nicola Rawcliffe is from Diss.
"The encouraging thing about this is also that there's going to be three Ministry of Defence (MOD) ministers and the victims minister, who was responsible for getting the Hillsborough law through Parliament.
"Her attendance is something that we really welcome and hope that it's a signal that the Government is willing to commit to transparency here.
"We would like the MOD to give us judge-led public inquiry on this. At the moment, we're in a judicial review on this and we feel getting one would help give us the answers we've been waiting for".
"Only a judge-led public inquiry has the powers to compel testimony"
David Hill, former MoD aeronautical engineer and technical advisor to the Chinook Justice Campaign, who has studied the case for the past 31 years, said: “These 225 new questions destroy the argument that there is nothing left to uncover.
“Together with the original 110, they expose how essential evidence was concealed from previous inquiries and demonstrate that the Ministry of Defence has never provided full transparency into the circumstances that led to the deaths of 25 senior intelligence experts and four Special Forces crew.
“The suggestion that no new facts will be uncovered is a deliberate misrepresentation to cover up past wrongdoing. Only a judge-led public inquiry has the powers to compel testimony, access sealed documents and finally establish why 29 people were put on an unairworthy aircraft their own test pilots and engineers were forbidden from flying.”
"Many of the families are suffering from ambiguous loss – a frozen trauma"
The Chinook families are calling on the Prime Minister, with whom they want a face-to-face meeting, to:
Over-rule the MoD and reverse the decision to block a public inquiryGrant access to ALL files on the Chinook Mark 2 and crash, including those sealed until 2094Make the Chinook crash the test case for the new Hillsborough Law, officially the Public Office (Accountability) Bill.
The families are still awaiting a decision by the High Court on their application for a Judicial Review of the government’s failure to order a public inquiry under Article 2 of the Human Rights Act, which protects the right to life.
Mark Stephens, from Howard Kennedy LLP, lawyer for the families, said: “It’s now time for ministers, the Ministry of Defence and the UK Government to step up and to stop standing in the way of a judge-led public inquiry.
“Many of the families are suffering from ambiguous loss – a frozen trauma caused by the failure of the MoD to be transparent about the circumstances surrounding the crash.
They seek truth, transparency and a clear commitment to a full, independent public inquiry into why their loved ones were placed on an unairworthy aircraft.”
What have ministers said on this?
An MOD spokesperson said:
“The Mull of Kintyre crash was a tragic accident, and our thoughts and sympathies remain with the families, friends and colleagues of all those who died. We understand that the lack of certainty about the cause of the crash has added to the distress of the families.
“The accident has already been the subject of six inquiries and investigations, including an independent judge-led review. Lord Coaker, Minister of State for Defence, Al Carns, Minister for the Armed Forces and Louise Sandher-Jones MP, Minister for Veterans and People, will be meeting with representatives from the Chinook Justice Campaign before the end of the year, to listen to their concerns first hand.”
Background:
• “We have now received the Chinook Justice Campaign’s formal claim for a Judicial Review of our decision to reject the demand for a judge-led inquiry into the circumstances of the crash. Our focus is on responding to that claim and to the allegations contained within it and we are unable to comment further at this time.
• In 2010, the Mull of Kintyre independent judge-led review was carried out and the findings were fully accepted by the MOD. The review, and previous investigations and inquiries, found that the evidence did not make it possible to reach conclusions on potential technical causes for the crash.
• The Mull of Kintyre Review was an independent review under Lord Philip, which was widely praised for its objectivity and thoroughness. Its findings can be found in more detail here.
• A number of investigations were held into the circumstances of the accident, including a Board of Inquiry and a Fatal Accident Inquiry, along with subsequent reviews by the House of Commons Defence Committee; the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, and the House of Lords.
• There has not been any evidence presented that would shed significant new light on the cause of the crash.
On safety:
• The MOD takes the safety of all personnel extremely seriously, to ensure that our equipment operates at the highest standards we put safety right at the heart of our procurement activities.,
• In the event of a fatality or major loss of equipment, a thorough independent investigation is undertaken by the Defence Safety Authority.
• The Chinook helicopter has had an excellent safety record since the Mull of Kintyre crash and has been a mainstay of operations in successive theatres of war.
• Neither the RAF or the MOD recognise the term ‘show flight’ and have no information to support any such theory
On sealed documents:
• The closed records held at The National Archives contain personal information