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Tue 22 Feb 2005
Drama at Scots airbase
LOUISE GRAY
TWO airmen escaped unscathed yesterday when their Tornado bomber caught fire during a full-scale emergency landing after one set of the plane's wheels failed to lower.
Last night the Ministry of Defence said an inquiry had been launched into the dramatic 180mph emergency landing at RAF Lossiemouth in Moray.
The crew rushed to safety after the aircraft came to a halt with a wing on fire from the impact with the ground.
The GR4 was returning to the Scottish base from a training exercise when the pilot reported he could only lower the wheels on the left side.
When the aircraft landed, an arresting wire brought it to a halt after it careered down the runway. Its right wing scraped and sparked on the tarmac, catching fire.
RAF fire crews were at the scene 20 seconds after the Tornado landed at about 4pm and smothered the flames in foam as the pilot and his navigator scrambled to safety.
The pilot and navigator of the aircraft are believed to be one of the RAF bomber crews who have seen action in recent conflicts, including Iraq.
Michael Mulford, an RAF spokesman, said: "You can't really train for this type of emergency so the tremendous reaction of the crew and the fire crews deserves full praise.
"Knowing them, they will be back in the air tomorrow because that's the way that the RAF works."
The aircraft is fire-damaged but will be repaired. Mr Mulford praised the pair for saving the aircraft by deciding not to ditch into the sea. "If you are satisfied that you do have an option to land the aircraft and get yourselves out of it, that is a better option than dumping the aeroplane in the sea," he said.
An in-built emergency method of blasting nitrogen into the hydraulics to force undercarriage out only managed to bring down the port wheels.
It is very rare for the undercarriage hydraulics to fail, although a Tornado jet was forced to land on its belly at 200mph at RAF Leuchars in December 2003.
Then, the undercarriage malfunctioned on the F3 air interceptor shortly after Flight Lieutenants Simon Grieve and Graham Harvey took off from the Fife base on 4 December. But again, the two-man crew managed to escape unscathed from an emergency landing.
RAF Lossiemouth houses three operational Tornado GR4 squadrons, and the Tornado GR4 Operational Conversion Unit. There are about 60 aircraft at the base with 12 Squadron, 14 Squadron, 15 Squadron and 617 Squadron of The Dambusters.
An MoD spokesman said last night: "A Tornado GR4 from 12 Squadron at RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland conducted a controlled emergency landing at its home base this afternoon.
"The aircraft encountered unexpected undercarriage problems. The crew managed to effect a landing but the aircraft caught fire.
"RAF fire crews reacted immediately and both crew members were rescued with no injuries.
"The actions of the aircraft crew and RAF fire crews are an excellent example of the professionalism and effective training of RAF personnel. An inquiry is under way."
The investigation into why the plane's landing gear failed will be conducted by 12 Squadron.
