To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what independent safety assessment his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on Kapton wiring; what assessment his Department has made of the implications for the UK fleet of the role of the performance of Kapton wiring in the September 1998 crash of Swissair flight 111 over Nova Scotia; and if he will make a statement. (140912)

At the time of the crash of Swissair Flight 111 we were already aware of the potential safety issues associated with Kapton wiring.

In 1987, the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency carried out an investigation of Kapton wiring. The investigation resulted in a number of specification requirements, which now form the basis of tests included in British Standards and in Defence Standards. These Defence Standards are the benchmark for all general airframe electrical wiring used on UK military aircraft.