RAF deafened me with noisy aircraft and gunfire, claims elite trooper

An elite RAF trooper left deafened by “incredibly noisy” aircraft and gunfire is suing for up to £100,000.

Alastair Bidwell, 55, served for 12 years in the RAF Regiment – a crack unit tasked with defending air bases, supporting special forces and providing forward air control and ground combat support.

The regiment, nicknamed the “Rock Apes”, was formed during the Second World War to prevent attacks by German paratroopers.

Celebrated former RAF troopers include football legend Brian Clough and actor Brian Blessed.

Mr Bidwell, now a plastering and project manager, left the RAF in 2000 after years spent training with “incredibly noisy” aircraft and firing thousands of rounds from guns ranging from infantry rifles to heavy machine guns and missiles while serving in zones such as the jungles of South America, Bosnia and Kuwait.

He is now suing the MoD for tinnitus and hearing loss so bad “it appears as though he is ignoring his family and friends when he cannot hear them properly.”

He is claiming up to £100,000 compensation on the basis that military bosses should have been aware of the need to limit noise exposure, including by providing adequate ear protection, and should also have given warnings about the potential hazards.

In court documents, Rachit Buch, his barrister, said Mr Bidwell was “persistently exposed to dangerously high levels of noise” while on duty at the firing ranges or on exercises, leaving him with long-term “permanent noise-induced hearing loss and tinnitus”.

Minimal protection measures

Mr Bidwell’s exposure to extreme noise started soon after he began basic training at RAF Swinderby, in Lincolnshire, when he carried out range training with an infantry SLR assault rifle, firing around 80 rounds per day.

While on the range, he was issued with “standard issue green ear defenders”, but the weapon noise was still audible, his barrister claimed.

Later, he progressed to training with the GPMG machine gun, live grenades and mortars, firing off thousands of rounds of ammunition.

“On range, he used push-in grommets which appeared to do very little, if anything, to reduce, noise levels,” stated Mr Buch, adding: “He wore no hearing protection most of the time on exercise.”

When subsequently serving with a ground defence unit, Mr Bidwell had to train for long periods with a Harrier jet fighter squadron, “using small arms and at times creating a 50-metre perimeter to the aircraft”.

Other combat training included firing rocket launchers, as well as carrying out jungle warfare deployment in Belize, “with a large amount of small arms fire and pyrotechnics without hearing protection for the majority of the time”.

“He undertook fighting in built-up area training, primarily with small arms, but also with pyrotechnics – grenades, thunderflashes and schmoolies, hand-launched flares – often in confined spaces such as hallways, stairwells and rooms,” his barrister explained.

During another posting, he carried out training with small arms and also Rapier surface-to-air-missile, but often had to “lift up one ear of his ear defenders”.

And on subsequent tours of duty in the Gulf, he was exposed to a “huge amount of aircraft noise”, said his barrister.

“Throughout his service, he flew in a variety of aircraft, some of which were incredibly noisy,” claimed Mr Buch, highlighting his exposure to the din created by Hercules transport planes and the Gazelle helicopter.

Poorer quality of life

Mr Bidwell, of Trearddur Bay, Holyhead, Wales, claimed compensation for tinnitus and hearing loss from the MoD on the basis he was not sufficiently protected from suffering injury to his hearing.

Explaining his condition, Mr Buch said he suffered with temporary ringing in his ears or muffled hearing while serving, but that it has become “more severe”.

He added: “His phone is turned to maximum volume and need for hearing aids has been advanced by around 10 years.

“He struggles to hear colleagues at work. His tinnitus affects his sleep, leaving him tired during the day times and at work.”

In its defence to the action, MoD lawyers are asking for the case to be stayed, pending the outcome of a cluster of similar “test cases” relating to deafness caused during service, which are due to be heard in the High Court later this year.

The MoD said it will be asking Mr Bidwell to prove any hearing loss he has suffered and loss that has resulted from it.

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