The men died when their Nimrod spy plane exploded in a ball of flame just minutes after undergoing air-to-air refuelling near Kandahar, Afghanistan, on September 2 2006.

Their inquest has heard two weeks' of evidence about repeated fuel leaks in the ageing Nimrod fleet and serious design flaws in the aircraft.

Assistant Deputy Coroner for Oxfordshire Andrew Walker has the power to make safety recommendations to avoid a repeat of the tragedy.

On Thursday, he told the court, sitting at Oxford's Old Assizes, that a number of options were open to him, including recommending the grounding of the entire Nimrod fleet which is based at RAF Kinloss in Forres, Scotland.

But the Ministry of Defence is under no obligation to carry out any such recommendations.

The 12 RAF personnel killed were: Flight Lieutenant Steven Johnson, 38, from Elgin, Morayshire; Flt Lt Leigh Anthony Mitchelmore, 28, from Elgin; Flt Lt Gareth Rodney Nicholas, 40, from Forres, Morayshire; Flt Lt Allan James Squires, 39, Nairn, Nairnshire; Flt Lt Steven Swarbrick, 28, from Inverness; Flight Sergeant Gary Wayne Andrews, 48, from Fochabers; Flt Sgt Stephen Beattie, 42, from Forres; Flt Sgt Gerard Martin Bell, 48, from Forres; Flt Sgt Adrian Davies, 49, from Forres; Sergeant Benjamin James Knight, 25, from Inverness; Sgt John Joseph Langton, 29, from Forres; and Sgt Gary Paul Quilliam, 42, from Forres.

Lance Corporal Oliver Simon Dicketts, from the Parachute Regiment, 27, from Wadhurst, East Sussex; and Royal Marine Joseph David Windall, 22, from Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire, also died.