Families of Chinook wreck victims to launch legal action against MOD
RAF Chinook ZD576 crashed on the Mull of Kintyre on June 2 1994 - killing all passengers and crew members onboard.
The grieving families of those killed in a Chinook helicopter crash on the Mull of Kintyre in 1994 have claimed they are launching legal action against the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for not ordering a public inquiry.
The family want a High Court judge to be able to review information which they claim was not included in previous investigations.
They believe this will help shed new light on the airworthiness of the helicopter.
RAF Chinook ZD576 was carrying 25 British intelligence personnel from RAF Aldergrove in Northern Ireland to a conference at Fort George near Inverness when it crashed in foggy weather on June 2, 1994.
All 25 passengers – made up of personnel from MI5, the Royal Ulster Constabulary and the British Army – were killed, along with the helicopter's four crew members.
The families of the victims, who have coalesced into the Chinook Justice Campaign, said failing to order a public inquiry is a breach of the UK Government's human rights obligations.
In a letter to the Government 31 years after the crash, the group said: 'The investigations conducted to date, whether considered individually or in combination, have failed to discharge the investigative duty.'
They have also called for the release of documents that were sealed at the time of the crash for 100 years, something revealed in a BBC documentary last year.
Solicitor Mark Stephens, who is representing the families, said: 'In this case, the families of those who were killed have seen more than enough evidence to convince them, and us, that there was a failure by the MoD to apply appropriate safeguards in order to protect the passengers and crew.
'In fact, they were put on board an aircraft that was known to be positively dangerous and should never have taken off.
'That is why we are seeking a judicial review into the Government's failure to hold a public inquiry – which the families have sought for more than a year.'
Following the crash, the Chinook's pilots, Flight Lieutenants Richard Cook and Jonathan Tapper, were accused of gross negligence, but this verdict was overturned by the UK Government 17 years later, following a campaign by the families.
A subsequent review by Philip set out 'numerous concerns' raised by those who worked on the Chinooks, with the MoD's testing centre at Boscombe Down in Wiltshire declaring the Chinook Mk2 helicopters 'unairworthy' prior to the crash.
Esme Sparks, who was seven years old when her father Major Gary Sparks was killed in the crash, said: 'We don't want to have to take legal action against the Government and MoD but we do want and need answers surrounding the circumstance of this crash.
'We want to know who or what is being protected? Who made the decision to let this helicopter take off? What is being hidden? In our view, a public inquiry is key.'
Andy Tobias, who was eight when his father, Lt Col John Tobias, 41, was killed, said: 'It's clear to me that a complete lack of duty of care was given to those passengers because they got on a Chinook that wasn't fit for flight.
Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community!
Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today.
You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland.
No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team.
All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in!
If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'.
We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like.
To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.
'And really, the government need to show their duty of candour and really be open and transparent about what's in those documents and give us the opportunity to really understand anything that's in them that could give us more answers about what happened.'
The MoD said that records held in The National Archives contain personal information and early release of those documents would breach their data protection rights.
A MoD spokesperson said: 'The Mull of Kintyre crash was a tragic accident and our thoughts and sympathies remain with the families, friends and colleagues of all those who died.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
25 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Trump ally Lindsey Graham calls out Elon Musk 'bull****' after tech titan throws his credibility under the bus
Senator Lindsey Graham snapped back at billionaire Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk, after the tech titan shared a post alleging he was responsible for nearly a million dollars in spending on hotel rooms in Ukraine. Graham, R-S.C., landed in hot water with former top Trump White House ally Elon Musk Tuesday afternoon in a spectacular clash on social media. Musk reposted a tweet which accused Graham of spending $400,000 on hotel rooms in Ukraine. Social media influencer Nick Sortor made the original post with the allegations, which has amassed over 10 million views since just before 11 a.m. Tuesday morning. 'People love whining in my comment section when I say Congress takes a lot of vacations: 'They're not on vacation. They're working in their districts!' 'BULL****. Lindsey Graham was just PARTYING IN UKRAINE on OUR DIME. When did Lindsey Graham become the Senator from Ukraine??!' Sorotor concluded. Sortor's post also included a video of Senator Graham and Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) shaking hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over the weekend in Kiyv. A screenshot of a spending disbursement of $411,634 made by the U.S. Department of State to an organization in Ukraine, the International - Business Center Tov was also included in Sortor's post. Musk reposted Sortor's post, adding 'Why is the hotel bill so high? The room service must be incredible!' Graham fired back at the allegations Tuesday afternoon with his own X post. 'Fake news. More BS. I'm all-in trying to help President @realDonaldTrump end this war — and making sure Putin doesn't win. This isn't a travel expense report. It's a monthly contract between the State Department for U.S. diplomats in a war zone — nothing to do with my trip' Graham tweeted from his official government account. Fake news. More BS. I'm all-in trying to help President @realDonaldTrump end this war — and making sure Putin doesn't win. This isn't a travel expense report. It's a monthly contract between the State Department for U.S. diplomats in a war zone — nothing to do with my trip. — Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) June 3, 2025 Per data available on USA Spending, the International - Business Center Tov has received $8.59 million marked as hotel spending. The group has received money from the American government in 2023, 2024, and 2025. While the allegations continued to gain steam on social media Tuesday, Musk's own Grok AI classified the X boss's claims as misinformation. 'There's no evidence supporting claims of GOP spending on luxury hotels in Ukraine; such narratives may stem from misinformation. The idea that Congress spends 60% of their time on vacation is exaggerated, as they work about 133 days in session, with other time often spent on district duties,' a Grok reply to a post made by X user Matt Van Swol reads. @matt_vanswol is expressing frustration over the GOP's failure to act on proposed spending cuts by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), linked to Elon Musk and the Trump administration. There's no evidence supporting claims of GOP spending on luxury hotels in Ukraine;… — Grok (@grok) June 3, 2025 Senator Graham has been one of Ukraine's most vocal advocates throughout the course of the nation's war with Russia, taking several trips to the country in recent years. Former White House strategist Steve Bannon accused Graham of working against the wishes of President Trump during his trips on an episode of his War Room podcast, which aired Monday. 'The White House has to condemn this immediately and pull all support and tell Lindsey Graham to come home or we are going to put you under arrest when you come home. You're stirring it up,' Bannon said.
Glasgow Times
26 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Al Qaida terrorists tried to poison UK water supply, says ex-security minister
Details of the foiled 2008 extremist plot were given by Lord West of Spithead, who was in office at the time, as the Government was tackled at Westminster over steps to protect the Britain's reservoirs against attack by hostile forces. It follows the publication of comprehensive military plans to safeguard the UK in the face of threats from Vladimir Putin's Russia and China. Sir Keir Starmer said the strategic defence review (SDR), published earlier this week, would create a 'battle-ready, armour-clad' nation. The move comes against the backdrop of ongoing concerns about the vulnerability of critical national infrastructure to attack. Pressed in Parliament over whether there had ever been an attempt or a plan uncovered to contaminate the UK's water supply, environment minister Baroness Hayman of Ullock said: 'My understanding is that there has not been such an incident, but that does not mean that we should be complacent. 'We know that our water and energy infrastructure are both potentially vulnerable to hostile attacks.' But moving to correct his frontbench colleague, Lord West, who served as Home Office minister for security and counter-terrorism from 2007 to 2010, said: 'In 2008 there was an attempt by eight al Qaida operatives to poison north London water supplies. 'I am pleased to say that our agencies worked brilliantly to stop it happening.' Lord West of Spithead sits on Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee (David Mirzoeff/PA) The former Navy chief, who sits on Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee, added: 'As a result, in the Home Office we put in hand a whole series of work on police response times, indicators of where the outflows from reservoirs went and new barriers. 'Where has all that work gone? These things somehow seem to disappear. There should be some reports, and hopefully someone did something about it.' Responding, Lady Hayman said: 'That is extremely interesting and very helpful of my noble friend. I will certainly look into it, because it is an important point.' Earlier, the minister told peers: 'The Government's first duty is to protect our national security and keep our country safe. 'Defra (the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) recognises that the drinking water supply is a potential target for hostile actors. 'It works with water companies and partners across Government to understand and monitor threats to water supply and to consider responses as appropriate to protect the security of our water system.' But Labour peer Lord Harris of Haringey, who is chairman of the National Preparedness Commission, said: 'I wonder whether her department is being a tad complacent in talking simply about monitoring the threat rather than looking at what practical arrangements can be made. 'For example, how do we deal with a drone which is flown over a reservoir and deposits something in there? 'The panic effects of that being known to have happened and not necessarily knowing what the substance is would be enormous.' Lady Hayman said: 'Tackling the diverse range of state threats – not just drones but many other threats – requires a cross-government and cross-society response. 'We need to draw on the skills, the resources and the remits of different departments and operational partners. 'In Defra, we work closely to look at the threats and the appropriate levels of response, specifically drawing on expert advice from the National Protective Security Authority, the National Cyber Security Centre and the Home Office, as well as carrying out threat assessment with policing partners.' Former Metropolitan Police chief Lord Hogan-Howe, who led the UK's largest force from 2011 to 2017, said: 'For about 15 years, I have been worried about the water supply – the large and small reservoirs, the pipes that connect them and, of course, the water treatment plants. 'I worry that there is sometimes confusion between the Home Office, Defra and others about who is looking after security.' The independent crossbencher added: 'It needs to be higher in the priorities than it presently appears.' In reply, the minister said: 'I can assure him that we discuss these matters with the Home Office. 'One thing that we have been trying hard to do in Defra and other departments since we came into government is to work better across Government.' The Home Office has been contacted for comment.
Leader Live
26 minutes ago
- Leader Live
Al Qaida terrorists tried to poison UK water supply, says ex-security minister
Details of the foiled 2008 extremist plot were given by Lord West of Spithead, who was in office at the time, as the Government was tackled at Westminster over steps to protect the Britain's reservoirs against attack by hostile forces. It follows the publication of comprehensive military plans to safeguard the UK in the face of threats from Vladimir Putin's Russia and China. Sir Keir Starmer said the strategic defence review (SDR), published earlier this week, would create a 'battle-ready, armour-clad' nation. The move comes against the backdrop of ongoing concerns about the vulnerability of critical national infrastructure to attack. Pressed in Parliament over whether there had ever been an attempt or a plan uncovered to contaminate the UK's water supply, environment minister Baroness Hayman of Ullock said: 'My understanding is that there has not been such an incident, but that does not mean that we should be complacent. 'We know that our water and energy infrastructure are both potentially vulnerable to hostile attacks.' But moving to correct his frontbench colleague, Lord West, who served as Home Office minister for security and counter-terrorism from 2007 to 2010, said: 'In 2008 there was an attempt by eight al Qaida operatives to poison north London water supplies. 'I am pleased to say that our agencies worked brilliantly to stop it happening.' The former Navy chief, who sits on Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee, added: 'As a result, in the Home Office we put in hand a whole series of work on police response times, indicators of where the outflows from reservoirs went and new barriers. 'Where has all that work gone? These things somehow seem to disappear. There should be some reports, and hopefully someone did something about it.' Responding, Lady Hayman said: 'That is extremely interesting and very helpful of my noble friend. I will certainly look into it, because it is an important point.' Earlier, the minister told peers: 'The Government's first duty is to protect our national security and keep our country safe. 'Defra (the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) recognises that the drinking water supply is a potential target for hostile actors. 'It works with water companies and partners across Government to understand and monitor threats to water supply and to consider responses as appropriate to protect the security of our water system.' But Labour peer Lord Harris of Haringey, who is chairman of the National Preparedness Commission, said: 'I wonder whether her department is being a tad complacent in talking simply about monitoring the threat rather than looking at what practical arrangements can be made. 'For example, how do we deal with a drone which is flown over a reservoir and deposits something in there? 'The panic effects of that being known to have happened and not necessarily knowing what the substance is would be enormous.' Lady Hayman said: 'Tackling the diverse range of state threats – not just drones but many other threats – requires a cross-government and cross-society response. 'We need to draw on the skills, the resources and the remits of different departments and operational partners. 'In Defra, we work closely to look at the threats and the appropriate levels of response, specifically drawing on expert advice from the National Protective Security Authority, the National Cyber Security Centre and the Home Office, as well as carrying out threat assessment with policing partners.' Former Metropolitan Police chief Lord Hogan-Howe, who led the UK's largest force from 2011 to 2017, said: 'For about 15 years, I have been worried about the water supply – the large and small reservoirs, the pipes that connect them and, of course, the water treatment plants. 'I worry that there is sometimes confusion between the Home Office, Defra and others about who is looking after security.' The independent crossbencher added: 'It needs to be higher in the priorities than it presently appears.' In reply, the minister said: 'I can assure him that we discuss these matters with the Home Office. 'One thing that we have been trying hard to do in Defra and other departments since we came into government is to work better across Government.' The Home Office has been contacted for comment.
