Written question asked by Jim Murphy (Labour) on Thursday, 21 April 2011, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 27 April 2011. It was answered by Peter Luff (Conservative) on Wednesday, 4 May 2011 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Libya: Armed Conflict

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what military equipment has had its life extended in response to the conflict in Libya; for how long the life of each item has been extended; on what date the life of each item is expected to expire; and what estimate has been made of the cost to the public purse of each month of life extension for each item.

Answer: A single Nimrod R1 surveillance aircraft, two C-130K Hercules transport aircraft and the Type 22 Frigate HMS Cumberland have had their service lives extended in response of the conflict in Libya.These equipments were due to be withdrawn from service from 1 April 2011 and have been extended by three months, one month and 16 days respectively, though the decision on the Nimrod R1 will be kept under review.Contractual negotiations for the Nimrod R1's extension have not yet been completed, but the anticipated cost is likely to be around £4 million. The cost of extending the C-130s and HMS Cumberland is anticipated to be around £15,000 and £575,000 respectively.

Secondary information