Sunday, January 03, 2016

MoD pays out £2,300 for damage caused by low-flying RAF aircraft in Lincolnshire

More than £2,300 has been paid out for damage from low-flying RAF aircraft in Lincolnshire - including a broken chandelier.

A face and neck injury and dislodged roof tiles are also included in the three separate Lincolnshire compensation claims paid by the Ministry of Defence.

It spent a mammoth £374,895 on claims involving low-flying aircraft during the 2014 to 2015 financial year.

The biggest payout in Lincolnshire was £1,262 for a face and neck injury caused by a Tornado.

A damaged patio door and chandelier cost the MoD £780 in a second Lincolnshire claim, after "sonic incident" caused by a Typhoon.

Another sonic incident resulted in a third payout of £275 for dislodged roof tiles.

The figures come from a Freedom of Information request made to the Ministry of Defence.

In its reply to the request, the MoD states: "The MoD takes the issue of safe low flying extremely seriously and understands that military low flying can be noisy and unpopular, but it is an essential part of operational training."

It said it tries to "keep such disturbance to an absolute minimum".

It also said there is a Low Flying Complaints Enquiry Unit at RAF Wittering, which allows people to report any low flying incidents that they feel concerned about.

According to the figures, the largest 2014/15 payout was for "the loss of poultry and egg production" after an incident involving a Chinook in East Sussex.

A similar claim, again in East Sussex and involving a Chinook, resulted in £30,648 being paid out.

More than £20,000 was paid for the loss of a calf in Co Amargh, in Northern Ireland.

Other claims included loss of gamebirds and birds of prey, injured cattle and horses, damage to cars and even tents.

Personal injuries also include hurt wrists and hands, whiplash, and hip and back injuries.

Source: http://www.lincolnshireecho.co.uk

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