Faulty ejector seat halts Red Arrows
... and some Typhoons grounded too
The Red Arrows were grounded last night because of safety fears about their ejector seats.
The RAF display team, which flies hawks, cancelled its appearance at Farnborough Air Show yesterday and the RAF stopped all non-essential flights of Typhoon fighter jets, which use the same seats.
essential Typhoon flights include responding to any threats to UK airspace, commitments to Nato operations in Romania and threats to the Falkland Islands.
RAF sources said the grounding of flights followed an inspection of aircraft yesterday. They said the decision was not in response to any incident or accident involving ejector seats. Sources said the Red Arrows’ programme remains under ‘continuous review’ and that ‘RAF engineering is working closely with industry at this time. everything remains subject to further technical advice’.
An RAF spokesman said: ‘This is a temporary precaution to maximise safety while our engineers carry out a technical investigation. Operational and essential flying will continue. We will meet all our commitments to protecting UK and Nato airspace.’
In 2011, Flight Lieutenant Sean Cunningham, a Red Arrows pilot, was killed when an ejector seat sent him 220ft in the air during pre-flight checks on the ground at RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire.