14.1 |
Military equipment (post-conflict)
772.
Mr Browne
asked that PJHQ check that point with
Maj Gen White‑Spunner and
that “a
robust narrative” be developed “ASAP” to explain the discrepancy
between the
reason
Vector was originally procured and its planned deployment in
Iraq.
773.
On 23 May, an
MOD official submitted revised advice to Mr Browne,
reducing
the figure
of Mastiff vehicles that should be re‑allocated from 43 to 39 and
stating that
Maj Gen White‑Spunner
was content.410
774.
Mr Browne
agreed the advice, but reiterated the necessity to generate a
narrative
which
explained the use of Vector in southern Iraq.411
775.
Lt Gen White‑Spunner
explained to the Inquiry that the difficulty of using
Mastiff
vehicles
for a MiTT role was:
“… for MiTT
to really work well, it wants to always be slightly unobtrusive …
and we
had large
protective vehicles because of the dangers we had been facing
…”412
776.
Lt Gen White‑Spunner
commented that a vehicle which balanced protection
needs
with the
desired military profile was not possible: “Industry just can’t do
this, they are not
in the
showroom.” He added:
“So we had
to use the Mastiff vehicles, which … is an excellent vehicle … it
is just
slightly
large for going down the more delicate bits of the
Hanaya.”
777.
On 17 June,
Corporal Sarah Bryant, Corporal Sean Reeve, Lance
Corporal
Richard
Larkin and Paul Stout were killed by an IED while patrolling in
Lashkar Gar in
Afghanistan.413
Their
deaths prompted further questions in the media and in
Parliament
about
Snatch vehicles.
778.
During a House
of Commons debate about defence procurement on 19
June,
Mr Patrick
Mercer asked Mr Bob Ainsworth, Minister of State for the Armed
Forces from
June 2007
to May 2009, when Snatch vehicles would be taken out of
service.414
779.
Mr Ainsworth
referred to the introduction of Ridgback but added:
“Whether we
will be able to take away these small platforms without taking
away
a whole
area of capability will need to be thought about very seriously.
Snatch has
suffered
some considerable setbacks; we have lost lives in Snatch Land
Rovers.
However, I
am being told by commanders on the ground that they still need
Land
410
Email
SofS‑APS1 [MOD] to SofS‑Private Office [MOD], 23 May 2008, ‘FW:
20080521 – TELIC – MiTT
PM plan
MinSub v1 2 – SUKEO (13)’ attaching Note DJC [junior official] to
APS/SofS [MOD], 22 May
2008,
‘Iraq: MND(SE) Military Transition Team Concept – Provision of
Protected Mobility’.
411
Minute
APS/SofS [MOD] to DJC SEC 7, 27 May 2008, ‘Iraq: MND(SE) Military
Transition Team Concept –
Provision
of Protected Mobility’.
412
Public
hearing, 7 January 2010, pages 47‑48.
413
GOV.UK, 19
June 2008, Corporal
Sarah Bryant, Corporal Sean Reeve, Lance Corporal Richard
Larkin
and Paul Stout
killed in Afghanistan.
414
House of
Commons, Official
Report, 19 June
2008, columns 1125‑1128.
133