Eye Witness
 

Reading the thread 'Just In Time' and watching the vids brought back memories of AC crashes I had witnessed. Amazingly during my time I have seen 5 first hand and all of the crew got away with it.

Number one was in the late 70's at Laarbruch. From the armoury car park I had a great view of the 2 Sqn T bird doing a wheels up along the runway and the ejection(s). I believe the SEngO was in the back seat.

Number two was in 83? Returning from the Martel site at Marham I got to see a fully loaded Victor Tanker burst into flames on the runway whilst taking off. The crew all managed to escape the biggest bonfire ever in Norolk.

Three was a Starfighter falling short of the runway at Deci about 90ish, he banged out ok.

Four and five were both whilst I was working on 1 Sqn Pan at Wittering in the 90's. Firstly one of our GR5s went sliding by with Flt Lt H....... dangling on his chute obove.

The last on I witnessed was surely the most unexpected, a Hurricane from the BoBF. Hearing the state two tannoy we all went on the pan as it was such an rare ac call. Watching it stall and burst into flames as it hit the ground we thought the pilot had no chance, thankfully he got out.

So the moral of the tale. If any of you out there decide to do the dirty with your ac, best make sure I'm watching and you will be fine;)

As per the old joke: I think you're bad luck!

Can't compete with 5 but the one I saw was all rather surreal. Waiting at the lights on the peritrack at Chiv (the main gate was closed for refurb) a Hawk was on finals over the estuary. All looked OK until it started to drift lower, then the pilot banged out leaving the aircraft to land short and skid accross the peritrack about 30 yards in front of us! The tide was out so the pilot got rather muddy :E

I equally cannot compare with 5, but sadly saw the BAe Hawk at Bratislava in 1999. As others have said, it was surreal watching the display and realising (well) ahead of the crash that it was going to happen and willing to no avail that the pilot step over the side. RIP.

My count is four - once I was working at a company in Bicester in the early 90s (when Upper Heyford was still operational) I happened to step outside to witness an F-111 in its final throes of crashing, trailing a great tongue of flame (the crew attempted to dump fuel before they left with the cockpit). The a/c came down in a factory car park just outside the town. Fortunately there were no injuries although I recall one bloke had a lucky escape - typical story of 'the plane just kept getting bigger' before he dove under a parked car.

Three display crashes - Yak-18 at White Waltham (no injuries), Sea Fury at Prestwick (gear stuck - pilot bailed out over the Clyde), and the Spirit of St Louis replica at Coventry (my only fatality). Oh, I suppose the G222 scrape at RIAT a few years back also counts.

At Akrotiri in 1984 (IIRC) I watched the Sparrows opposition loop with growing horror as it became obvious one of them was going to hit the ground and then he did!

Big thump, all sorts of debris going in all directions and then to our amazement a single figure, in flying suit, walking away from the wreckage.

I think his name was CH for those who remember. I often wondered what happened to him afterwards, particularly as to his chances on the national lottery!

I also watched the display F4 spear in, at Abingdon in 1989. Really big thump and I hadn't fully understood the meaning of "fireball" until that instant. RIP.

Rgds SOS

I do - my 'chute opened directly above it.

Watching nasty things happen
 

Saw the strange thing or two in twenty years but only one really odd

I was flying a Victor tanker past Binbrook one morning to pick up two lightnings for a a Queens birthday flypast at Scampton, 1968 ish.

One fighter joined up nicely the other went past turned upside down and tentpegged, spoiled the show a bit. I went to the funeral.

The BOI found the pilots harness was insecure, v odd

That, I think, was Al Davey.

I've seen 3, the Atlantique hitting the black sheds at Farnborough, watching him in the final turn thinking that's an awful lot of side-slip to have that near the ground, an auto-gyro that took it's own tail off with it's rotor, also at Farnborough and RAE's Buccaneer at West Freugh, one minute he was steaming in at low level, the next he wasn't, very sad.

I have witnessed a harrier run out of fuel in the hover. A hawk rotate too early and dissappear into the trees next to the runway, not one but two seakings splat into the deck and a hunter with a throttle restriction get the landing horribly wrong. All crew survived virtually unscathed thank goodness

SOSL
You are quite right about it being CH, I always remembered his Hunter displays pre Reds. I believe he left the Reds after that and was in Oman. I've been lucky and only witnessed one which was the Lightning at Akrotiri in 1987 I think with a safe ejection. I've seen quite a few ground mishaps, particularly with Arresting gear and Barriers, one that comes to mind was a 56 Sqn Phantom at the end of a MPC at Valley in 1980, blew a tyre, engaged the RHAG and proceeded into the sand dunes! A similar one just last year with an F15 engaging a BAK 14 way off centreline and proceeding into the desert being finally brought to a halt by an electric transformer! Happy outcomes on both so I suppose the old adage is true, any landing you walk away from is a good one!

Two for me; a Canberra PR9 going off the end of the runway at Marham circa 2002, and a Reds Hawk landing 'wheels up' at Cranwell in 2008.

The only mishaps I witnessed were at RNZAF Woodbourne c 1986, when on the first occasion I was the Orderly Officer when a SafeAir Argosy had undercarriage problems and after attempting the free the landing gear, it did a graceful approach (well, as much as an Argosy could) and executed belly landing on the grass strip. The Capt was a very well-known pilot, Bob Guard who was famously invovled in the Kaikoura UFO incidents in late 1978/early 1979. Nothing for me to do apart from taking some pictures for my album. Now where are those pics...?

A little later in the year we had an Airshow and there was a parachuting display. One of the 'chutes candled and there was an audible gasp across the crowd as the chute descended and then impacted. Fortunately, the jumper managed to cut away and descend on his reserve, as part of a group display, so it wasn't immediately apparent to onlookers that the chute was free (it was over the other side of the airfield). It was, for me as a 24 year old Fg Off, the first really stomach-churning moment of my life.

The collision of the Vintage Pair Meteor and Vampire at the 1986 Mildenhall Air Fete. Seeing two good chutes made everyone feel better and it wasn't until that evening that I found out that there were two aboard each aircraft.
Photos: De Havilland DH-115 Vampire T11 Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net
Photos: De Havilland DH-115 Vampire T11 Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net

Ramstein in 1988 was far worse.
Photos: Aermacchi MB-339PAN Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net
Photos: Aermacchi MB-339PAN Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net

The Mig-29 collision at Fairford was miraculous in the low number of injuries. (And I was quite impressed by the Patrioulle Suisse taking off for their performance 20 minutes after watching Fulcrums rain down around them!) No pictures of that because I was videoing.

I watched a Bulldog spin-in into Southport beach, 1977 IIRC, and then another landed alongside and nosed over on the sand. I thought they were models and neither looked for nor saw 'chutes, but I believe the 'spinner' was abandoned by the crew.

Saw a Frecce Tricolori Fiat G91 stoof at Mildenhall in about 79 - RIP. The Frecce display continued afterwards. All very surreal.

I witnessed a Canberra B2 suffer v low altitude asymetric power at Stornoway in 1979 at which time the pilot chopped the throttles leveled the wings and started "Our father.....". The aircraft missed the ILS by about 15` and damage was limited to shock loading the undercarriage when it turned onto the taxiway after a journey across the grass.

I was one of the first post 747 crash at Lockerbie which was probably worse than watching it.

All getting a bit morbid here gents, have a thought for those involved, not as "eye witnesses":rolleyes:

OK. Lighten up. All survived but it was spectacular.

Finningley (68?) I was walking along the peri track by the Finningley 8 on the run between ECMSDF in the electronics block and BCDU HQ behind 1 hangar when the Vulcan which was starting up started to collapse.

The crew chief, who was underneath the wing, tried a couple of runs with the aircraft coming down on top of him but eventually got out before it squashed him. Then the aircraft broke into three; the canopy blew off; and the crew vaulted over the windscreen, slid down the nose coaming and off the refuelling probe and hightailed it for the armoury

Good point, Shack. However, most posters, on this thread, seem to be pretty respectful. Accidents are an ever present element of aviation. Sadly that's how we make it better.

We have to be free to talk about accidents.

Rgds SOS

For the best cuppa on the station:)

Glad to say that in 41yrs in this business, I have never witnessed a crash/abandonment/major incident.

Profoundly hope it stays that way.

HB

Valley open day - Ray Knowles arrives in his trusty Lightning for a static display, complete with a lot of Sqn gizzits. One main gear leg won't come down and Ray has to eject, being careful to point the jet at ROI, of course....;)

The first one i remember was at the Empire Air Day at Aldergrove in about 1948/9. Somebody was doing aerobatics in a Tiger Moth and he did a perfect 0.75 of a loop before stomping into the ground. He waded out of the wreckage; and everybody applauded.

They then put it on a trolley and towed it around the crowd so that they could see what a crashed aeroplane looked like.

It was nearly as interesting as the first jet aircraft so come to Ireland; a Meteor.

Ternhill tower on QHI course watching baby rotary studes whilst waiting for my turn. Enter 1 squirrel yawing rapidly and climbing ......up........then down. 1 Squirrel reduced to kit form. Few rapidly moving DHFS instructors. Stude in pub later.

I was just going to mention that one! Must have been '79 or '80? I'd taken a static too and saw the whole thing. SARBo(u)ys were just about waiting for him when he jumped - think he only got wet from the waist down. And got back to the bar .......

Prolly wouldn't allow that these days.....!

Driving home from happy hour at Temple Hill OM Changi, 68/9 and noticed foam being laid on the runway. RMAF Herald with IIRC a nosewheel problem - great landing and not a mark on the fuselage.

Pisa '71 - awful red flash when one of the Hercs ahead of us flew into the sea at night; 6 crew killed (including PJI) and 40 plus Italian paratroops. RIP.

Nothing notable in my civil ATC career, thank goodness, except a Sea Fury ground looping at Boscombe c85/6.

PS Nearly forgot - October 12th '67 3 engined landing in XV179 when trainee skipper reversed the wrong two engines and we veered to the right off the runway. Ice cool instructor in right hand seat really impressed this baby navigator, he managed to simultaneously tx to ATC,'XYZ is leaving the runway','I have control' to my skipper, sort out the throttles and bring us to a halt just before we would have dropped off the grass onto the beach 7 or 8 feet below. One Laurie (Lorenzo) Martin, later of Cathay.

If it was you who jumped out of the Lightning at Akrotiri in July 87, thanks - my mum still wants a word (I was running away from it as it drifted in). I saw the Hurricane at Wittering too (that was a surreal tannoy message) and I remember Steve H getting a nice pat on the back for getting Tim E out of the Harrier that suffered a failure in the hover (GR3?).

'I witnessed a Canberra B2 suffer v low altitude asymetric power at Stornoway in 1979 at which time the pilot chopped the throttles leveled the wings and started "Our father.....". The aircraft missed the ILS by about 15` and damage was limited to shock loading the undercarriage when it turned onto the taxiway after a journey across the grass'

I remember it well, we were stood on the pan waiting for it to appear from the same direction as the others, when appeared from behind the hangar from totally the wrong direction, to our amazement. The next few days where spent crawling all over it taking lots of measurements to see how bent it was, and it proved to still be within limits, just goes to prove what a tough old bird the old canberra was.

Sadly!!
 

5 Harriers, and 1 Jaguar.

4 survivors - 1 fatal - 1 VSI

The latter, VSI one - was a GR3, albeit in the GR5 era - and if Steve H was the one who got Tim out of the cockpit/fireball, then a true hero!!.

For those that do not know Tim E - one of the most inspiring young men you could ever wish to meet/know.

I was in the static display area by the Puma when the Russian Mig29s collided. It was one of those "slow motion" events; I knew it was probably going to happen about four or five seconds in advance (it was obvious that the pilot of the lower aircraft had lost sight of the aircraft above him due to a small amount of cloud that passed between them and they were on a direct collision path). Despite being a "static only" aircraft we were airborne in response some time before the dedicated SAR Wessex lumbered over.

I agree that the Swiss did a very professional job in getting airborne and carrying on regardless (and so did the display co-ordinator).

Unfortunately, not so impressive was the prolonged whining on tower frequency from the Reds about the transmissions from SAR beacons on UHF Guard, which was apparently "reserved" as "their" standby display frequency. I think the leader failed to fully grasp that as there had been two aircraft seat ejections shortly before, the beacons were not actually under the direct control of ATC! :ugh:

Jul 88 (my 21st birthday) I was taking part at a Town Show in Lowestoft watching a four-ship Bulldog display when the rear one trailled black smoke, dropped back and then sank below the sea wall. We all thought it was part of the display until told it had landed on the beach.

Next, watching Budgie Burgess and Bob Ankerson bang out at night in Iraq in 1991 after their bombs had prematurely detonated. We didn't really know that we'd seen them depart the jet until it was confirmed, weeks later by John Major on his visit to us, that they had been released.

Syerston September '58, saw the Vulcan break apart at BoB display. Would never have guessed that five years later, Sept '63 I would be standing at the Guardroom window at Finningley as a newbie joining 230 OCU B Sqdn and getting to play with them.

Re summary of C's career, he had been in Oman before Hunters at TWU. I don't think he returned to Oman. Re his Reds' crash - we were airborne in a 4-ship when the Reds were doing a practice session during their winter workup in Cyprus. On landing back, there was a little red jet parked on the grass beside the runway, with a pole sticking out of the cockpit. I believe that C didn't intentionally eject - the seat fired on impact and the drogue chute pulled him out. I think he then had an accident in a FJ overseas.

I did see the MiG-29 crash at Paris in 1989. Now that was spectacular, and there are pics of the vertical jet and nearby pilot approaching the grass very adjacent to each other. Years later I met Anatoly Kovatcha (sp?) as a Su tp, and by then he had already ejected from an Su-27.

I have witnessed 3 glider crashes, one fatal (Tutor at St Athan)h, one serious and one with no injuries, both at Dunstable.

I have also witnessed 3 aircraft crashes, 2 fatal, all at air displays - Atlantique at Farnborough, Havard at St Athan, and the non fatal one, the Mig 29 collision at Fairford. (Shy Torque, I also knew it was going to happen some seconds before it happened)

In over 50 years of motoring, I have only witnessed one fairly minor crash, two if you include the one I was in.

Seen too many, sadly.
Beechcraft T.34C at Mildenhall, 2 fatalaties. Likewise Vintage Pair two years later.
P.38 Lighning at Duxford, 1 fatal, Ryan monoplane at Coventry 1 fatal, Fairey Firefly at Duxford, 2 fatal, and videod by me. A very bad runway collision at Oshkosh, Wisconsin, [somersaulting Corsair after losing it's port wing on an almost stationary Bearcrcat], Migs at Fairford, also videod, fatal collision at Oshkosh between two landing P.51 Mustangs, also videod, and too many undercarriages being knocked off to list. Got tired of seeing people die, I only attend Duxford these days. I sometimes felt that disaster followed me around.................

Rgds SOS

I believe we make it better by learning from it, not by recounting accidents we've witnessed.:ok:

I was on resettlement leave and heard the rumble as I walked up to the pub at about 19.00, it was a really still evening and the sound of a lone Siren from Carlisle heading for the A74, followed by more and more as Carlisle's emergency services emptied and started heading north will stay with me untill I die.
But for the grace of God and a minute or two's flying time, we would have been wearing it as our village is on the route and only about 10 miles South.
As the news broke in the pub I had a hard time stopping those that wanted to go gawk at the crash site from going, which I managed to do.
I left the pub at closing and was heading home when the first of the Chinooks went over at about 11:45, being ex Chinook I realised the work involved in getting the guys in, all the equipment needed, generating a cab, and then getting it overhead in the timeframe, I was impressed to say the least, luckily the wind direction on the night meant we were saved from the horrors of the debris field.
Several friends from home were in the Police and one of the Guys was effected quite badly from what he had seen, he was one of the first to the cockpit, I won't repeat the horrors he saw, he was equally impressed when he realised that a lot of the Local Fire brigade called out were part timers and were still wearing their normal clothes under their fire gear.

None; and may it stay that way.

Hmmmm.
I just wonder what the likes of Mannock, Cheshire, Richthofen and Galland might have thought of some this verbalism.

Khormaksar 64/66 - Belvedere, crashed in dispersal - fatal
- Marauder, crashed after lift-off - fatal
Chivenor 67ish - Sea Vixen, on finals - fatal
Valley 73ish - Two Hunters collided downwind - fatal
-Whirlwind crashes and sinks in Holyhead harbour 73ish -all survived
(I was in a dinghy about 100metres away)
- Beagle crash shortly after take-off - all survived, (Stn Cdr on board)
Scarborough 83ish - Lightning crashed in the bay -fatal
Farnboro Airshow 84 -Buffalo crash - all survived
RIAT 93 - Two Mig 29s collided -ejections
Paris Airshow 99 - Flanker Su30 crash -ejections
Farnborough Year? - F18 failed to pull out of loop -fatal?
Plus three wheels-up affairs (one from the cockpit)

Hopefully not regarded as morbid. Factual, but sad recollections