# £1.7m, £7m or £15m? The Brize Norton damage figures the MoD cannot substantiate

> Prosecutors and police have cited three different costs for damage to two RAF Voyager tankers. Declassified UK's Freedom of Information requests found the MoD cannot substantiate any of them.

- URL: https://www.brizenortonfiles.com/articles/brize-norton-damage-cost-figures
- Published: 2026-11-08
- Author: Investigations Desk, The Brize Norton Files
- Topics: AirTanker & PFI, The case

## Key points

- Prosecutors have said repair costs reached £1.7 million and could rise to just under £15 million. Police put the damage at about £7 million.
- Declassified UK's Freedom of Information requests found the Ministry of Defence (MoD) could not substantiate any of these figures, reported on 13 November 2025.
- The £7 million figure appears to have come from AirTanker, the private company that owns the Voyagers, not from the MoD.
- AirTanker's chief executive says both damaged planes were recovered in less than 21 days, which the repair estimates do not explain.

Declassified UK's reporting indicates that the police figure of about £7 million came from AirTanker, the private company that owns the Voyagers, rather than from the MoD. Prosecutors and police have given the figures, and the MoD has not stood behind any of them.

The damage followed the early-hours incident of 20 June 2025, in which two people entered RAF Brize Norton and rode electric scooters across the airfield to two Voyager planes, according to The Guardian's reporting. Declassified UK reported that red paint was sprayed into the planes' jet engines, and that further damage was reportedly caused with crowbars. For background, see [what happened at RAF Brize Norton](https://www.brizenortonfiles.com/articles/what-happened-at-raf-brize-norton) and [AirTanker and the Voyager deal](https://www.brizenortonfiles.com/articles/airtanker-voyager-pfi-contract).

## Who gave the three figures?

| Figure | Who gave it | Substantiated by the MoD? |
|---|---|---|
| £1.7 million (repair costs reached) | Prosecutors | No |
| Just under £15 million (could rise to) | Prosecutors | No |
| About £7 million (damage) | Police | No. The MoD could not give a breakdown |

**Three damage figures, none substantiated by the MoD** — Estimates of the cost of damage to Voyagers ZZ338 and ZZ343, £ million

| Item | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Prosecutors: repair costs so far | £1.7 m |
| Police estimate (figure originated with AirTanker) | £7 m |
| Prosecutors: could rise to just under | <£15m |
| Figures the MoD could substantiate under FOI | None |

Source: Prosecution and police figures as reported; Declassified UK FOI findings (13 Nov 2025)

## Why can the figures not be substantiated?

The MoD said the final cost would not be known until each damaged engine had been through a "comprehensive overhaul". More than a year after the protest, the cost remains unsubstantiated.

The prosecution has not said what the repairs involved or what each part cost, so the public has no way to see how the totals were reached. The highest figure is nearly nine times the lowest, and the police figure sits between them. Being unsubstantiated does not make the figures wrong, but no breakdown has been published that would let anyone test them.

## Were both planes back within 21 days?

The MoD has confirmed that the two damaged planes were Voyagers ZZ338 and ZZ343. Mark Alexander, chief executive of AirTanker, which provides the Voyagers to the RAF, was asked about the protest on The High Ground podcast. He said: "We recovered that in less than 21 days."

A quick return does not prove the cost estimates wrong, because replacing an engine can be expensive. But it raises the question of how two planes said to need up to £15 million in repairs were both back within three weeks, on AirTanker's account. The [flight records of both planes](https://www.brizenortonfiles.com/articles/voyagers-zz338-zz343-flight-records) and the [repair timeline](https://www.brizenortonfiles.com/articles/voyagers-back-in-service-21-days) bear directly on that question.

## Did the damage stop operations?

Downing Street said the incident had not blocked any planned aircraft movements or stopped any operations. The core Voyager fleet is nine aircraft, so losing two removed over a fifth of its capacity at once.

The MoD told Declassified UK that ZZ343 was undergoing routine maintenance and was not in regular service at the time. Flight tracking shows it had flown operations from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus for most of the previous four weeks, then landed at Brize Norton at 13:57 on 19 June, hours before the protest.

Maintenance may have begun as soon as the plane landed, but the MoD has not explained the gap. The claim that damage to ZZ343 could not have affected operations is hard to square with the flight record.

## What would settle the question?

The first five accused pleaded not guilty, and Lara Downes has also denied the charges against her. The figures have already been used in court, so the court process could test the prosecution's basis for them. The trial is due to begin on 25 January 2027 at Woolwich Crown Court.

## Questions and answers

**How much damage was done to the Voyager planes at RAF Brize Norton?**

Prosecutors have cited repair costs of £1.7 million, which could rise to just under £15 million. Police have put the damage at about £7 million, and the MoD has substantiated none of these figures.

**Has the MoD confirmed how much the Brize Norton damage cost?**

No. The MoD says the total will not be known until each damaged engine has had a 'comprehensive overhaul', and more than a year after the protest the cost remains unsubstantiated.

**Were the damaged Voyagers back in service quickly?**

AirTanker's chief executive, Mark Alexander, has said both planes were recovered in less than 21 days. Flight data shows ZZ338 flying again on 1 July 2025 and ZZ343 flying to Akrotiri on 12 July 2025.

## Sources

1. [How much damage did Palestine Action really do at Brize Norton?](https://www.declassifieduk.org/how-much-damage-did-palestine-action-really-do-at-brize-norton/) — Declassified UK, 2025-11-13
2. [Booms, probes & PFIs: future of UK air refuelling](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=offISG_aZF4) — The High Ground, 2025-09-25
3. Flightradar24 flight histories — Flightradar24