'Overwhelming' case to save RAF Leuchars

Published on Sunday 21 November 2010 15:46

THE strategic case for keeping RAF Leuchars open is "overwhelming", Sir Menzies Campbell has insisted after speculation that the Fife base could face closure.

The Scotsman revealed on Saturday that RAF Leuchars could be axed to save jobs in other parts of the country, despite earlier reassurances it was safe.

Liberal Democrat MP Sir Menzies, whose North East Fife constituency covers Leuchars, has now written to Defence Secretary Liam Fox outlining the case for keeping the base.

Sir Menzies said the base was "in the right place at the right time and doing the right job" in defending the country against threats to its security.

On Saturday, The Scotsman reported that shutting Leuchars - home of many of the UK's Typhoon Eurofighters - was now being considered as an alternative to closing RAF Lossiemouth in Moray and RAF Marham in Norfolk, because ministers believed it would be easier to regenerate the area.

Previously it was widely believed that Lossiemouth and Marham were in direct competition to survive as home of the Tornados and the new joint strike fighters (JSFs) when they come into service in 2020.

But the coalition government has come under fierce pressure to keep Lossiemouth open because of the impact on Moray's economy if it were to shut.

The area is already braced for the closure of RAF Kinloss after a new fleet of Nimrods, which were to be based there, were cancelled in the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR).

In his letter, Sir Menzies said RAF Leuchars was "uniquely positioned" to protect the bulk of Scotland's population from the most serious threats.

"The positioning of the Quick Reaction Alert at Leuchars has provided a necessary and effective response to potential incursions into UK airspace," he wrote. And he added that the base was "more than a fighter station", housing several other military units.

"All the capabilities presently located at Leuchars are essential to the defence of the realm and conveniently and strategically located together," he wrote.

"In short, RAF Leuchars is in the right place at the right time and doing the right job, effectively fulfilling its current responsibilities and equipped and poised to take forward the air defence role for which it has been thoroughly prepared.The strategic case for RAF Leuchars is overwhelming."

Speaking to The Scotsman yesterday, Sir Menzies added: "The status quo is the best way of fulfilling the fundamental responsibility of any government to protect its citizens."

He said he was not entering into "comparative discussions" about the merits of the Fife base as opposed to Lossiemouth or any others in the UK.

"The strategic case for Leuchars is overwhelming. It is already fulfilling the responsibility of the frontline air defence base for Scotland," he said.

"The Typhoons are already arriving and fulfilling their role. There is no strategic case in my view for changing any of that."

A final decision is due to be announced in March next year.

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: "The outcomes of the SDSR mean that RAF Kinloss and two other bases will no longer be required by the RAF.

"No decisions have been made on which bases these may be or on the future use of any bases."