Nimrod families may sue

Relatives of some of the 14 servicemen killed when an RAF Nimrod plane exploded in Afghanistan are planning action against the Ministry of Defence.

The families have been consulting lawyers in London about taking a case to the courts.

The victims included Flight Sergeant Gerard Martin Bell, 48, formerly of Brookside, Telford.

The MoD has said it will pay compensation to the families and that claims would be dealt with “quickly and amicably”.

The Nimrod crashed in September 2006 as it attempted an emergency descent to the Kandahar air base after a fire broke out in the bomb bay. It exploded at 3,000ft.

A coroner ruled that the entire RAF Nimrod fleet had never been airworthy and should be grounded.

Graham and Trish Knight, whose son Ben, 25, died in the crash are among those planning action.

Mr Knight said: “Had this been a bus company and the vehicle had been unworthy then legal action would have been taken, if not by the families, then by the Crown Prosecution Service.

“In our case, however, nothing seems to have been done. There have been no charges and nobody has been brought to blame for it. I feel the Ministry of Defence is not beyond the law.”

Barrister John Cooper confirmed that he was instructing the families of some of the other victims.

An MoD spokeswoman said: “The Secretary of State has directed that compensation will be paid and claims will be handled quickly and amicably. We are currently awaiting detailed evaluations of the claims from the families’ solicitors.

“Once these are received, we will deal with the claims as quickly as possible. Any further legal claims will be reviewed as and when they are submitted.”