RAF Tornado crashes into sea off Scotland

[RoyalGreenJacket]

A TORNADO jet crashed into the sea off the west coast of Scotland yesterday after it burst into flames at 6,000ft during a routine training mission.
The two crew managed to eject before the £25million aircraft came down in the Minch, at Loch Ewe, near Gairloch, Wester Ross, at 2.45pm.
The jet, thought to be a GR4 fighter Tornado based at RAF Lossiemouth, was said to have been on a training mission with a second Tornado when it erupted in flames.



Read more: http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/...#ixzz1CIPVadDM

a lucky escape, nice to see the SAR team got to them quickly enough.

[Craghopper]

Glad the two drivers got out and are safe and well.

[Goldie fish]

1 driver, 1 talking freight.

[Flamingo]

Well, that's one less to scrap...

(glad they got out, of course!)

[turbocalves]

Home in time for a MB tie and blazer badge!

[RoyalGreenJacket]

i think we are underestimating this lads.

the RAF Tornado's fly low, extremely low - the RAF were famous, some would say notorious, for flying so low in Gulf War 1 and their training to become experts in this special field no doubt sometimes results in accidents and therefore the attrition rates may seem high.

FWD to 5m40secs onwards to see some extreme low flying during combat in Iraq.



and i understand this accident in particular was probably not a result of low flying however what the crew went through should not be dismissed as a simple 'dip in the drink' - they have done something that very few people in the world get to do and i am delighted they survived relatively unscathed.

[DeV]

If I remember correctly Tornado GRs have a good terrain following radar that allows the autopilot to fly extremely low

[RoyalGreenJacket]

i believe so Dev, however the levels they fly at in that video could only be performed by a human - it is way below that any automated system would ever allow or be capable of.