What video footage tells us about RAF training jet crash

The RAF is investigating a clang involving 1 of its high-speed Hawk combatant jets aft 2 of its pilots ejected and parachuted retired of their level moments earlier it crashed and burst into flames.

The RAF said that grooming connected these jets had been "temporarily" paused arsenic a "precautionary measure".

North Wales Police said the pilots, who had been flying a grooming aircraft, were being treated for insignificant injuries.

While an probe is nether way, present is what we cognize truthful acold and what the clang footage shows us, according to 1 expert.

The Hawk T2 craft had been flying retired of the RAF Valley basal connected Anglesey erstwhile it plummeted to the crushed astatine adjacent Pencarnisiog.

RAF Valley is utilized to supply some basal and precocious fast-jet training.

According to BBC Security expert Mikey Kay, who besides served successful the RAF for 20 years, the country was "perfectly situated for grooming pilots" and was portion of the "low-flying system".

According to the Ministry of Defence, determination are 20 low-flying areas - besides known arsenic tactical grooming areas. They are located successful cardinal Wales, bluish Scotland, the borders country of confederate Scotland and bluish England.

RAF Valley is besides adjacent to the Machynlleth Loop - a bid of valleys betwixt Dolgellau successful Gwynedd and Machynlleth successful Powys.

The loop, besides known arsenic the Mach Loop, is an attraction for aviation enthusiasts and photographers.

"These pilots they bid successful debased level, they bid successful instrumentality flying, enactment flying, wide handling, truthful that area, the Anglesey country and its accessibility to each of those landscapes for the request of grooming is perfect," said Kay.

The pitchy progressive was Hawk T2 - a two-seat grooming pitchy by BAe Systems utilized for precocious pitchy training, and designed with akin controls to the Typhoon combatant jet.

According to the RAF, it comes with an precocious "glass cockpit", and the craft is besides utilized for the "most precocious accelerated pitchy grooming for RAF pilots".

The older mentation of the T2, Hawk T1, is besides utilized by the Red Arrows, which the BBC understands are besides included successful the pause. However, they were not owed to alert again until Le Touquet Airshow successful France this weekend. It is not known erstwhile the regularisation volition beryllium lifted.

Kay, a erstwhile RAF aviator who grew up 3 miles distant from RAF Valley, shared video connected societal media appearing to amusement flames rising from the rear of the T2 jet, external arsenic it rolls down the runway.

As the pitchy climbs, the flames look to disappear. It is not wide however agelong aft take-off the pilot's ejection from the level took place.

Kay told the BBC that the Hawks are non-reheated jets, which means they bash not person reheat - besides known arsenic afterburn successful the US. This is simply a secondary combustion strategy that injects earthy substance straight into a pitchy engine's exhaust watercourse down the turbine, which gives the pitchy a large short-term boost successful thrust.

It is antithetic to an F18 oregon a Tornado wherever orangish flames volition travel retired of the jet, Kay explains.

"You ne'er ever spot flames coming retired of the backmost of a Hawk," helium said, adding that successful the video, the flames tin beryllium seen coming disconnected the broadside of the motor - wherever the main hydraulics strategy is, which controls however the level flies - and not retired of the engine.

Kay says that portion it is excessively aboriginal to say, it is imaginable that the origin of the clang was not an motor failure.

Kay told the BBC that the video helium shared connected X besides showed a reddish and achromatic van parked connected the side.

He said that van is not portion of aerial postulation control, and it was really spotters, and truthful did not person nonstop connection with the pitchy and did not person the authorization to archer the pitchy to abort.

Kay said the van, however, does person a nonstop enactment to aerial postulation control, but "by the clip that speech has happened, the pitchy is already airborne".

A video of the clang shared connected societal media appears to amusement the 2 pilots ejecting from the craft earlier it nosedives, crashes and bursts into flames.

The footage shows a plume of fume and occurrence erupting arsenic the craft hits the ground, appearing to narrowly miss residential properties.

Kay - who hosts the BBC's Security Brief - described footage of the pilots ejecting being caught connected camera arsenic "quite remarkable" and said the pilots' ejection spot was "one of the large lifesavers successful this full story".

He said determination are 2 options for ejection that tin beryllium taken successful a T2 pitchy - which usually involves an experienced aviator trainer and a student.

One enactment involves some pilots ejecting individually by pulling a achromatic and yellowish ringing placed betwixt their legs connected the jet, the 2nd enactment is called "command ejection" wherever 1 aviator ejects some seats, with whoever sitting astatine the backmost going first.

According to Kay, erstwhile the aviator decides to eject the seats, it sets disconnected a miniature detonation cord (MDC), a bladed explosive enactment that is utilized to shatter the canopy of a pitchy successful the lawsuit of an emergency.

"The craft spot is designed for the aviator to beryllium capable to eject astatine zero velocity and zero height, and that volition let capable clip for the parachute to inflate, and past the pilots deed the ground," helium added.

"As acold arsenic I'm alert this is the archetypal known lawsuit of this variant, the T2, ejecting pilots retired of it," helium said, adding that the information grounds for these jets is "obviously precise good".