Military to get new Chinooks that can fly twice as far in £2bn deal with Boeing

Britain's heavy-lift capability will be bolstered with the arrival of new Chinook helicopters after the Defence Secretary confirmed a £2bn deal with Boeing.

Grant Shapps, who was speaking during a visit to the Orzysz military range in Poland where Exercise Dragon 24 is taking place, announced the fleet of 14 upgraded Chinooks after he reversed a decision to cancel an order due on the grounds of cost.

Boeing's new CH-47ER variant will have double the 600-mile range of the models currently in use and can reach speeds of 300km/h, or around 200mph, allowing it to be deployed across a spectrum of challenging climates and conditions.

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The new Chinooks, which will reportedly be used by Special Forces, can carry up to 55 personnel or 10,000kg of cargo. An advanced digital cockpit and upgraded airframe to enhance stability and survivability are among the new capabilities.

The deal includes the production of critical components by British companies – essential in the manufacture and maintenance of the helicopters – and is expected to pump an estimated £151m into the UK economy.

Mr Shapps was able to strike a £2bn deal for the American heavy-lift helicopters.

His predecessor, Ben Wallace, had ordered the deal to be abandoned as costs had gone up by £500m from the initial estimates, and Mr Shapps credited Mr Wallace's intervention in getting the price reduced.

Mr Shapps said: "Procuring these Chinook helicopters will mark a significant milestone in our efforts to modernise and enhance the agility of the UK Armed Forces, cementing our ability to respond at pace to situations and threats across the globe.

"The Chinook is one of our most iconic aircraft, having been operated in every major conflict since the Falklands War. Delivering on this deal not only enhances our capability, but will boost UK industry and skills."

The Defence Secretary also said he supported an increase in UK defence spending to 3% of GDP.

But Mr Shapps said any such increase, from the current 2.27%, would be a matter for the next parliament.

He said his recent visit to Ukraine had been a wake-up call, adding that he believed the world had now become more dangerous.

"Defence is the best way to protect ourselves against a military conflict – you have to show your adversaries – so I am clearly in favour [of a 3% target]. We live in a more dangerous world, we've got Putin on the frontline making gains," he warned.

Mr Shapps' call follows demands from Security Minister Tom Tugendhat and Foreign Office Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan that spending should rise from 2.27% of GDP to 2.5% immediately.

The Defence Secretary suggested that if Russia was not stopped in Ukraine, China could attempt to invade Taiwan, which would drag Britain into multiple crises.

Mr Shapps also said he wanted to see changes to recruitment processes that currently see some applicants wait more than a year to begin training at a time when more people are leaving the Armed Forces than joining.

He said: "You can be rejected for the most ludicrous reasons. Medical tests will ask about family history and if they think in 40 years' time you might develop some diseases, using actuaries, then they'll say you cannot serve today.

"They're probably not going to be serving in 40 years' time.

"Who cares if somebody has got a beard? Does that really mean you cannot fight? Come on, we are living in the 21st century, it is time to move on."

His comments come after the announcement on Wednesday that the UK will extend the deployment of 100 personnel in Poland and the Sky Sabre system will remain there until the end of the year.

Mr Shapps also said he would join up if the UK went to war, specifically as a pilot in the Royal Air Force, having developed a love of flying from his father, who made paper aeroplanes.