Britain spends $2.1m monthly on Libya pilots' accommodation

London: Britain is spending $2.1 million, 1.5 million euros a month on accommodation for 1,000 service personnel in Italy, while they conduct air strikes on Libya, official figures showed Sunday.

The Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots and their support crews are deployed in four different parts of Italy as part of the NATO campaign against Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's forces.

The MoD said in April that it was considering alternative accommodation at Gioia del Colle. "The RAF is operating from Gioia del Colle in southern Italy where military accommodation is limited and therefore hotel accommodation must be used," it said.

NATO is enforcing a United Nations-authorised no-fly zone over Libya to protect civilians.