A PLANE fleet in which a Bridgwater man was killed is too old and needs to be replaced as soon as possible.

That is the view of town MP and army major Ian Liddell-Grainger and the father of the man who lost his son when his Nimrod aircraft crashed in Kandahar on September 2 last year.

This week Mr Liddell-Grainger revealed to the Mercury he is "extremely worried" about the Nimrod's age and called for its replacement - the MRA4 - to be introduced quicker.

It is a sentiment echoed by grieving father Graham Knight and it was Sgt Ben Knight's tragic death that spurred Conservative Mr Liddell-Grainger into further investigations and a visit to RAF Kinloss, where the planes are based.

But the MOD has robustly defended the aircraft, stating: "The Nimrod airframe has a good safety record and remains a potent and respected aircraft."

For the full version of this story pick up your Mercury on Tuesday (July 31).