asked the Minister for Defence if he will give the type and the delivery dates of the aircraft referred to at heading 5 in his reply to Parliamentary Question 274 on 15 April 1980; if these aircraft will in fact be delivered this year or have orders been placed due to the reductions in funds being made available under sub-heads Q.1 and Q.2 of this year's estimates for his Department.
Written Answers . - Aircraft Purchases .
366.
: An order for a single-engined Gazelle 342 helicopter was placed in June 1980 and delivery is due before the end of the year.
Orders for the purchase of a replacement Cessna aircraft and the lease of a twin-engined helicopter have not yet been placed as examination and evaluation of the offers received have not yet been completed.
An order for the repair of the damaged Cessna has been placed and it is expected that work will be completed before the end of the year.
The purchase of three twin-engined ship borne helicopters is being planned in conjunction with the two new generation naval patrol vessels.