The Royal Air Force's fleet of Nimrod MR2 maritime patrol aircraft will shortly be put back into operational service, potentially once again patrolling the skies over areas like Afghanistan as they did before. The Nimrods have been absent from Middle Eastern skies for several months while essential airframe modifications were being made, in light of the September 2006 incident in which one aircraft exploded in mid-air, with significant loss of life.

Royal Air Force Nimrod Fleet

The Royal Air Force Nimrod Fleet is headquartered at RAF Kinloss in Scotland. Providing the latest update on the situation to news organisation Flight International, base commander Group Captain Robbie Noel stated: "We are in really good shape, which is allowing us to support operations in the UK, and also start contemplating a return to the Middle East", adding: "If a requirement exists then I anticipate we would be ready to deploy in the summer."

As of June 8th 2009, seven Nimrods were at the stage where they could be put back into service, while an eighth will join them at the end of this month. All have had engine components replaced.

In related news, the Nimrod MR2's replacement, the Nimrod MRA4, is getting ever-closer to entering service. An initial aircraft type conversion course gets underway on June 22nd, while it is anticipated that the MRA4 itself will begin duties by Christmas 2010, although the first aircraft is set to take up residence at Kinloss in February 2010.

The Nimrod MR2's service life will extend up until March 2011.

RAF Nimrod Crash

The inquest into the September 2006 RAF Nimrod crash lasted much of May 2008, with the coroner involved in it, Andrew Walker, ultimately proclaiming that the aircraft were never fit to fly, and urging for a type-wide grounding to be enforced. Des Browne - UK Defence Secretary at the time - countered that the Nimrods were perfectly flyable.

On March 31st 2009, however, the MoD legislated the grounding of the fleet, pending airframe rectifications.

The explosion resulted in 14 deaths onboard the Nimrod - a fatality number that made it the most devastating single act encountered by British military personnel since the Falklands Conflict in 1982.

The 14 members of the British armed forces killed on the Nimrod were Flight Lieutenants Steven Johnson, Leigh Anthony Mitchelmore, Gareth Rodney Nicholas, Allan James Squires and Steven Swarbrick, Flight Sergeants Gary Wayne Andrews, Stephen Beattie, Gerard Martin Bell and Adrian Davies, Sergeants Benjamin James Knight, John Joseph Langton and Paul Quilliam, Lance Corporal Oliver Simon Dicketts and, finally, Royal Marine Joseph David Windall.