Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of retiring the Puma helicopters early on (a) Episkopi and (b) Dhekelia Garrison.

The Puma helicopters in the Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs) on the island of Cyprus have historically supported emergency response across the SBAs, as well as providing troop movement and defence engagement tasks to British Forces Cyprus, including Episkopi and Dhekelia garrisons.

The MOD takes a rigorous approach in assessing the risk of any capability transitions. The Department is exploring options to fulfil some short-term capability transitions in the SBAs before the H-145 platform enters services from 2026. Defence’s Strategic Objectives will continue to be fulfilled.