Court told ejection-seat system good but failed

A Red Arrows pilot died after the parachute on his ejection seat failed to deploy in an event that would only happen “once every 115 years”, a court heard.

Flight Lieutenant Sean Cunningham was fatally injured after being ejected from his Hawk T1 aircraft while conducting pre-flight checks on the ground at RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire, on November 8 2011.

The parachute on the Mark 10B ejector seat did not deploy and the South African-born airman fell 200ft before he later died in hospital.

Defence submissions for MartinBaker Aircraft Company Ltd said an assessment by the Ministry of Defence was that the likelihood of a similar event such as this happening is that it would only happen once every 115 years.

At Lincoln Crown Court, Richard Matthews, defending, said: “The company accepts its responsibility for the significant contribution and failings it has made in the death of Lieutenant Cunningham.”

He added: “The ethos of the company from its inception is for the ejection seat to be a lifeboat that should operate effectively in every situation.

“In the 1990s, what Martin-Baker had in place was a good system and it just failed in this instance.”

Martin-Baker Aircraft Ltd director John Martin admitted on behalf of the company to the failure to ensure the safety of non-employees in connection with the 35-year-old’s death at a hearing on January 22.

The Honourable Mrs Justice Carr adjourned sentencing until Friday February 23 at the same court.