UK sees protection for Hercules planes by year-end

LONDON, Mar 1 (Reuters) Britain plans to fit the majority of its Hercules aircraft with fuel tank fire protection by the end of 2007 -- almost three years after 10 aircrew died when one such plane crashed in Iraq, the defence ministry said.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence gave the timeframe late yesterday after the BBC reported that only seven of the Royal Air Force's fleet of C-130 Hercules transport planes had been equipped with the special foam to prevent explosions.

''The programme to fit explosive suppressant foam to the majority of the RAF Hercules fleet is ongoing,'' the defence ministry spokesman said. ''On current plans it is expected that this work will be completed around the end of the year.'' The spokesman said the RAF had a total of 44 Hercules planes.

The BBC put the figure at 48.

Ten RAF aircrew died in Iraq in January 2005 when their Hercules transport plane lost its wing and crashed after small arms ground fire had set a fuel tank ablaze.

An official inquiry concluded that the lack of a fuel tank inerting system in the wings left the plane vulnerable to explosions and may have contributed to the crash.

Then defence secretary John Reid admitted last May the men's lives could have been saved if their plane had been fitted with such protection -- used as standard by the Americans.

BBC News said it had discovered only seven Hercules planes had been given the special foam safeguard so far.

Nigel Gilbert, a former Hercules pilot who the BBC said flew with special forces in Afghanistan, told the broadcaster he was glad the defence ministry was acting but thought it was doing ''too little, too late''.

''I believe there's a very real chance that next time we could lose fifty or sixty people on a Hercules,'' Gilbert said.

The main opposition Conservative Party also criticised the government for what it called a failure to fulfil a pledge to equip the Hercules fleet with the suppressant foam.

''The MoD must take swift action to ensure we do not end up with another tragedy in the armed forces,'' Conservative Party defence spokesman Liam Fox said in a statement.

''With these aircraft operating at such a high tempo this must be a priority,'' he said.

Britain last week announced it was scaling back its mission in Iraq from 7,100 troops to 5,500. But it is sending an additional 1,400 soldiers to Afghanistan, which will evenutally take the force there to 7,700.

REUTERS PB RK0958