| 10/01/1996 | ZE166 | AF | Tornado F3 | 56(R) Sqn | Collided almost head on during ACT due an error by the pilot of ZE862. One aircraft crashed 50 yards from the Sleaford to Lincoln railway line. Wreckage fell onto the line between Metheringham and Ruskington blocking the line for five hours. The other aircraft crashed at Ewerby near Sleaford. All four crew ejected safely |
| 10/01/1996 | ZE862 | AB | Tornado F3 | 56(R) Sqn | |
| 11/01/1996 | ZD846 | BL | Tornado GR1 | 14 Sqn | Control was lost during ACM with two other Tornados. The pilot, an Italian officer on exchange, failed to adopt the correct recovery procedure and both crew ejected at 700 ft. The aircraft crashed into woods on a golf course near Albachten six miles south west of Munster, Germany |
| 23/01/1996 | XX733 | ER | Jaguar GR1A | 6 Sqn | The aircraft was No. 3 in a flight of three Jaguars taking off from Coltishall, Norfolk. The pilot omitted to select afterburner and after a long take off roll failed to gain height. The undercarriage caught the barrier at the end of the runway causing it to belly land into a cornfield. The main fuel tanks were punctured and an intense fire engulfed the front of the aircraft. The pilot attempted to eject but the aircraft struck the ground before this was initiated and he was killed |
| 13/02/1996 | XX164 | Hawk T1A | 74(R) Sqn | Rolled to one side during take off from Valley, Anglesey for the morning weather check flight. The pilot was unable to control the aircraft and ejected. Unfortunately his chute did not open and he was killed. The ailerons had been left disconnected following maintenance | |
| 14/02/1996 | XZ455 | 001 | Sea Harrier F/A2 | 801 NAS | Large amounts of right rudder were required to maintain balanced flight during a night approach to HMS Illustrious while operating in the Adriatic Sea following an operational mission over Bosnia. The pilot elected to overshoot and passed at deck level neither climbing or accelerating. The aircraft then descended towards the sea and the pilot ejected. He was picked up by a Sea King from the carrier |
| 19/02/1996 | ZG476 | WT | Harrier GR7 | 1 Sqn | While on final approach to Wittering, Cambridgeshire at the end of a flight from Cyprus the engine lost power following a loud bang. The pilot ejected and the aircraft crashed into woods at High Farm, Southorpe, three miles from the runway. His parachute became entangled in trees but he was able to release his harness and drop 20 feet to the ground suffering only minor injuries. Due to failure of a blade in the second stage low pressure turbine |
| 23/02/1996 | ZD789 | AM | Tornado GR1 | 9 Sqn | Made an emergency landing at Bruggen, Germany with the rear of the aircraft on fire. The aircraft took the arrestor cable and the crew vacated on the runway. The generator gear box had run dry and started the fire which spread to the first stage fuel inlet pipe. The aircraft suffered extensive damage and after repair assessment at St. Athan was stored at Shawbury until scrapped during April 2002 |
| 23/02/1996 | XZ445 | 721 | Harrier T4N | 899 NAS | Crashed during a training exercise while in thick fog near to the village of Churchstanton, four miles from Wellington, Somerset thirty minutes after take off from Yeovilton. It slid for 300 yards across fields and a road before exploding in flames. Neither of the crew ejected and both were killed. The cause was attributed to the pilot using an updated head up display which differed to what he was used to |
| 25/02/1996 | WZ876 | G-BBWN | Chipmunk T10 | Private | The engine failed immediately after take off from Netherthorpe, Nottinghamshire due to the carburettor icing up. The aircraft belly flopped onto a hedge which contained a small stone wall that effectively destroyed the aircraft. The fuselage came to rest on its left hand side almost inverted but with little damage to the cockpit and engine areas. The two crew received minor injuries |
| 26/02/1996 | ZD845 | AF | Tornado GR1 | 9 Sqn | While on an air test from Bruggen the pilot attempted to divert to Laarbruch due to a fire warning. While on approach the aircraft failed to respond to control inputs and the crew were forced to eject. The aircraft crashed eight miles south of Laarbruch west of Kamp Lintford, between Geldern and Issum, Germany. An 18 Squadron Chinook rescued the crew who were only slightly injured. A hot gas leak had started afire in the rear of the aircraft which had damaged the flying controls |
| 03/1996 | XZ302 | Gazelle AH1 | Ex 655 Sqn | The aircraft was delivered to Fleetlands for overhaul from 655 Sqn during 1992 after suffering a heavy landing at Aldergrove. After being stripped down an accumulation of previously carried out squadron level minor repairs were discovered which, when added together rendered the aircraft beyond economical repair. It was put into store until being withdrawn from use on this date and was broken up for spares | |
| 09/04/1996 | XX388 | Gazelle AH1 | Ex 1 Regt | The aircraft was delivered to Fleetlands from Gutersloh on this date for overhaul. After being stripped down an accumulation of previously carried out squadron level minor repairs were discovered which, when added together rendered the aircraft beyond economical repair | |
| 13/05/1996 | ZF270 | Tucano T1 | 1 FTS | Crashed at Wet Wang near Great Driffield, Humberside after the propeller detached in flight. The student and instructor ejected safely | |
| 26/05/1996 | XX302 | TI | Hawk T1A | 74 Sqn | Four Hawks were the final element of an airfield attack during the ‘Tiger Meet’ at Beja. After breaking off following the attack the pilot of XX302 noticed two Portuguese F-16s which were acting as top cover. He took avoiding action but the underside of the Hawk struck and removed approximately one foot of the port tail plane of one of the F-16s. The F-16 managed to land but the Hawk pilot was forced to eject |
| 26/05/1996 | 15120 | F-16B | Esquadra 201 | ||
| 21/07/1996 | RR299 | HT-E | Mosquito T11 | Private | Entered a spin during a wing over manoeuvre during its display at Barton Airfield, Manchester. The aircraft was recovering from the spin at low level when it crashed into dense woodland one mile from the airfield. Both crew were killed |
| 24/07/1996 | XZ362 | GC | Jaguar GR1A | 54 Sqn | The pilot was leader of an eight ship formation operating from Eielson Air Force base, near Fairbanks, Alaska during DACT with F-16’s as part of exercise ‘Cope Thunder’ While rolling out of a turn 20 miles from Eielson the aircraft struck the tops of trees on a lightly wooded ridge. It remained controllable but the left engine was winding down. Being unable to relight it and with other warning captions illuminating the pilot ejected. He was picked up by an Alaskan Air National Guard rescue team |
| 16/09/1996 | ZD580 | 710 | Sea Harrier F/A2 | 899 NAS | Collided off the coast of Dorset near Portland during a one versus two Dissimilar Air Combat Training sortie. Both aircraft managed to recover to Yeovilton. The Sea Harrier lost the radome, radar and port stabiliser in the accident and was assessed at CAT 4. It was sent to St. Athan for store in October, and then to Warton for mods and repair during September 2001. With the announcement in 2002 that the Sea Harrier fleet was to be withdrawn the mods were terminated on 5th March and the aircraft returned to St. Athan in June 2002 for spares recovery and later to a private collector at Sproughton, Suffolk |
| 16/09/1996 | J-139 | F-16A | 323 Sqn | ||
| 18/09/1996 | XX143 | X | Jaguar T2A | 16(R) Sqn | Suffered failure of No. 2 engine during a paired take off from Lossiemouth, Grampian. The pilot jettisoned the two fuel tanks, which exploded on the runway, in an attempt to gain height. This failed and he ejected at 50 feet. The aircraft crashed into the sea 400 yards off the beach. The pilot was quickly rescued from the water by a 202 Squadron Sea King |
| 28/09/1996 | ZE759 | Tornado F3 | BAe Warton | Following an overshoot at Blackpool Airport during a test flight from Warton, Lancashire the aircraft began to roll uncontrollably. Both crew ejected and the aircraft crashed into the sea 60 yards off Blackpool Pleasure Beach. One crew member landed in the water and was picked up by a lifeboat. The other landed on the beach. Caused by a small object which had jammed to taileron control. A lengthy rebuild had recently been completed on the Tornado using the centre fuselage from Tornado F2 ZD904 | |
| 02/10/1996 | XP282 | G-BGTC | Auster AOP9 | Private | The aircraft landed a long way down the runway at South Lodge Farm airstrip, Nottinghamshire and the pilot decided to go round again. The aircraft failed to climb sufficiently to clear cars which were parked on the western end of the strip and the left wing struck the roof of one of the cars. The pilot was unable to maintain control and it stalled and crashed into the adjoining field. The two crew escaped without injury |
| 03/10/1996 | ZA765 | Gazelle AH1 | 25 Flt | Aircrew and troops in Belize are trained regularly in the art of jungle extrication in the event of a rescue being required. Part of their equipment consists of a balloon and a canister of chemicals which when water is added produces a gas which inflates the balloon. This rises above the trees therefore the rescuing helicopter can locate the aircrew or troops on the ground. During these exercises ZA765 was regularly used and the waste chemical canisters were stowed in the rear of the aircraft. During routine maintenance it was discovered that the chemicals had burnt through the floor, damaging the structure and flying controls. To Fleetlands but it was deemed uneconomical to repair and was disposed of during September 1999 | |
| 16/12/1996 | XZ492 | 127 | Sea Harrier F/A2 | 800 NAS | Came alongside the carrier to land while operating in the Mediterranean Sea. The pilot could not maintain the hover and the aircraft continued to descend. Full power was applied but the pilot was forced to eject when it descended below the deck level of the ship seconds before it struck the water |
