RAF Leuchars soars ahead of rival Lossiemouth in battle for survival

Published on Tuesday 28 June 2011 15:36

LEUCHARS could be saved as an RAF base after a late change of heart in the Ministry of Defence's review of its base closures.

The Scotsman has learned that the base in north-east Fife has moved ahead of Lossiemouth in Moray in the battle for survival, as Defence Secretary Liam Fox prepares to announce the future shape of military basing in the next two weeks.

It is understood that, while a final decision has yet to be taken, pro-Leuchars factions in the RAF have made the case that its closure would leave a strategic gap in the UK's defences.

A senior MoD source told The Scotsman Leuchars' rapid- reaction role was "vital".

He went on: "It works well with Coningsby (in Lincolnshire] with the Typhoons and, while they could go to Lossiemouth, the extra distance is a problem."

One of the reasons Leuchars had been favourite to close as an RAF base was because soldiers are due to quit Germany and move into disused RAF premises, and the army would prefer to move to Fife rather than Moray.

But the source said: "Fortunately, the army don't make the decisions."

Former Liberal Democrat leader Sir Menzies Campbell, who represents the North East Fife constituency which houses Leuchars, welcomed the news. "I have consistently argued that RAF Leuchars is in the right place at the right time and doing the right job," he said.

"If these reports are correct, then the strategic case for Leuchars has won out. By its geographical location, it is ideally placed to provide air defence for the northern half of Great Britain and in particular for the most significant centres of population, like Glasgow and Edinburgh."

But SNP MP Angus Robertson, who represents Moray - which has already lost RAF Kinloss - said the strategic case for Lossiemouth has been acknowledged, with both an RAF and MoD departmental recommendation for retention.

He said: "In addition to the unbeatable strategic arguments, there is the unique key factor of unprecedented economic damage were there to be a second RAF base closure in Moray. No part of the UK is as defence-dependent as Moray, and a double closure would be unthinkable and totally unacceptable."

The RAF recommended late last year that Lossiemouth should kept in preference to Leuchars. One reason was the Moray base dovetailed better with the Norwegian air force in protecting the northern access routes.

There had been concerns, too, over the impact on Moray, which lost RAF Kinloss after the Nimrod cancellation.

Labour's Dunfermline and West Fife MP Thomas Docherty said: "As we continue to scrutinise the Treasury-driven cuts, the government's base-closure programme is unravelling.

"The MoD is now realising that the country will not tolerate the closure of bases on anything other than defence grounds."Originally, Leuchars was not included in the review, but concerns over Moray meant it became an option. A third option, RAF Marham in Norfolk, has been all but ruled out as it is too expensive to move engineering facilities. Now the pro-Leuchars case may previal for strategic reasons and due to concerns by some in the RAF about the lack of infrastructure in Moray.

If Lossiemouth were to close, it would almost certainly be combined with Kinloss to house many of the troops coming back from Germany.

Defence review to blame

THE debate over the future of Scotland's air force bases were prompted by the UK government's strategic defence review, which ordered cuts in RAF spending.

The closure of RAF Kinloss was confirmed under the review, with the cancellation of the Nimrod contract. It looked as though nearby Lossiemouth would survive a battle with Leuchars to remain as Scotland's only RAF base, as defence bosses weighed up further cuts with a view to minimising the impact on Moray. But the strategic case for keeping Leuchars, which will house the new Typhoons tasked with defending the air space above northern Britain, appears to be holding sway.