Chinook crash families say PM meeting is 'a significant step'

Families of those killed in a Chinook helicopter crash in Scotland more than 30 years ago have welcomed Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's agreement to meet them.

They described it as a "significant and long overdue step" towards truth and accountability.

Four crew and 25 passengers were killed when the helicopter, carrying senior security personnel from RAF Aldergrove in Northern Ireland to Fort George near Inverness, went down in June 1994.

Jenni Balmer-Hornby, whose father died in the crash, said they hope this "marks the beginning of a meaningful process to finally deliver truth, transparency and accountability for the families".

For years, the pilots were wrongly blamed for the disaster before being formally cleared in 2011.

Families have long campaigned for full disclosure of all documents relating to the crash and for a judge-led public inquiry into the crash, which the prime minister has rejected.

Liberal Democrat MP Tessa Munt raised the case in Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday, calling for direct engagement with the families.

The Chinook Justice Campaign said Starmer's response marked the first time in a generation that families have been offered the opportunity to put their case directly to the country's most senior political leader.

Balmer-Hornby said: "After more than three decades of unanswered questions, the prime minister's "agreement to meet is a significant and welcome step."

"The campaign said it now hopes the Prime Minister's intervention will break the long-standing impasse, and lead to a clear timetable for the release of information and consideration of a full independent inquiry," she continued.