In this article:
RAF Typhoon landing with no canopy
Taken by Richard Boettcher and posted on RAF Coningsby Spotters Group (CLICK HERE for more pictures), the photos in this post feature a Royal Air Force (RAF) Typhoon belonging to XI (F) Sqn at RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire, safely landing after an “in-flight emergency.”
According to the RAF the aircraft landed without the canopy because it had been “jettisoned by the pilot” during a flight which took it over the North Sea.
According to BBC that quotes a RAF spokesperson, the mishap was the result of a suspected bird strike.
The Typhoon, whose pilot was fine, landed safely to RAF Coningsby.
Litening targeting pod and pylon falling in field in Haisthorpe
The mishap comes a week after the RAF launched an investigation after a Litening targeting pod along with its pylon detached from a Typhoon and fell in a field in Haisthorpe, near Bridlington, in East Yorkshire.
As already reported there was no damage to any property and no reports of any injuries and the equipment has been recovered.
At the moment the targeting pod and its pylon “landed” in the field, a loud “thud” was heard. Shaun Colman explained to BBC that it was “lucky” the equipment came down where it did and not in the village.
Former RAF pilot and now aviation journalist David Learmount said it was the “first time in years” he had heard of a pylon falling off.
He added that some sort of error when the pylons were being mounted was the most likely cause of the failure.
“Either that, and I think this is slightly less likely, a failure in one of the attachment parts,” he pointed out.
Mr Learmount said there was a lot of military activity in the skies over Lincolnshire and Yorkshire.
However, he said, due to the rural landscape of the region, any objects falling from planes were likely to land in “open country”.
Royal Air Force Coningsby
RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire is one of two RAF Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) Stations which protect UK airspace. RAF Lossiemouth is the other.
It is home to two frontline, combat-ready squadrons and is the training station for Typhoon pilots.
Almost 3,000 Service Personnel, Civil Servants, and contractors work at RAF Coningsby.
Photo credit: Richard Boettcher
