Chinook families urge Prime Minister Andy Burnham to meet them within first 100 days and honour Hillsborough Law pledge

24 July 2026

The families of those killed in the RAF Chinook disaster have called on new Prime Minister Andy Burnham to meet them within his first 100 days in office and honour his pledge to end Britain's "cover-up culture" by ordering a fresh independent review into the 1994 tragedy.

The call comes after Mr Burnham referenced the Chinook campaign during his speech to the House of Commons on Hillsborough Law a few days before becoming PM, where he pledged to “accelerate” duty of candour and end the institutional culture that has denied bereaved families the truth for decades.

The Chinook families are urging the Prime Minister to establish an independent review, outside the Ministry of Defence, with full access to all relevant documents relating to the airworthiness of the Chinook Mk2 helicopter and the circumstances leading up to the crash which killed 25 senior intelligence experts and four special forces crew.

In a letter to Mr Burnham, they write: “Throughout your career you have argued that the State should never use its power to frustrate families seeking the truth. We respectfully suggest that the Chinook case now presents the first opportunity for your government to demonstrate those principles in practice and should be the test case for Hillsborough Law.”

Their appeal is backed by Sir Liam Fox, who has also written personally to the new Prime Minister urging him to resolve the case. Sir Liam points out that a similar letter, delivered by hand along with some of the relatives of those killed in the Mull of Kintyre crash, to Sir Keir Starmer last month was ignored.

In his letter, the former Conservative Defence Secretary says that those involved in the 2011 review which cleared the pilots - including Lord Michael Forsyth, Baroness Helen Liddell and Lord Malcolm Bruce - believe justice has still not been done and that there may have been a cover-up about the airworthiness of the aircraft.

Sir Liam writes: “There is undoubtedly a feeling amongst the public that there are too many instances where vested interests have protected themselves rather than serving the public or justice including Hillsborough, the infected blood scandal, the post office scandal and the recent case where MI5 lied to the courts.

“Getting justice for the families of those killed in the Chinook tragedy would set an

excellent tone for your Premiership.”

The Chinook Justice Campaign has also written to new Defence Secretary Wes Streeting urging him to “begin correcting the mistakes of your predecessors.” The families have requested that the victims minister Alex Davies-Jones, re-appointed last week, take up their case as one of the test cases for Hillsborough Law.

Matt Tobias, son of Lieutenant Colonel John Tobias MBE, who was killed in the crash, said: "We congratulate Andy Burnham on becoming Prime Minister and wish him every success in office. We also welcome the new Defence Secretary and the Victims Minister back to government, both of whom strongly support the new duty of candour on public bodies.

"Mr Burnham’s speech in the House of Commons, in which he spoke about ending Britain's cover-up culture and strengthening the duty of candour, gave our families real hope. We ask that he and his ministers give the Chinook families more respect than we received from his predecessor, who denied us a meeting and an inquiry – believing MoD lies instead.”

Last week, at the High Court, MoD lawyers argued that the Chinook families had taken too long to challenge the MoD about why their loved ones were placed aboard an aircraft that was “positively dangerous” – according to MoD test pilots and test engineers. Their legal team will now take the case to the European Court of Human Rights.

"But we do not want years of further litigation,” said Matt.

“The Prime Minister has the power to prevent that by ordering a fresh independent review. We would urge Mr Burnham to meet us within his first 100 days in office so we can present the evidence that has emerged over recent years and explain why we believe a fresh review, independent of the Ministry of Defence, is now essential.

"Mr Burnham has spent years standing alongside families failed by the state. We hope he now lives up to the commitments he has made and shows that those principles apply equally to the Chinook families.

"After 32 years, we are not asking for special treatment. We are simply asking for the truth."