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| Date: | Tuesday 22 May 1979 |
| Time: | |
| Type: |  Folland Gnat T.1 |
| Owner/operator: | CFS The |
| Registration: | XP539 |
| MSN: | FL541 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 2 |
| Other fatalities: | 0 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | Leeming, North Yorkshire -
 United Kingdom
|
| Phase: | En route |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | RAF Kemble (EGBP) |
| RAF Leeming |
Crashed at Leeming, North Yorkshire after the engine cut due to a fuel blockage. Both pilots ejected safely but Flt Lt Underdown sustained back injury.
XP539 actually belonged to the Red Arrows, but was a reserve ship not fitted with smoke. It was being flown by Flt Lt Mike Underdown and Wing Commander Ernie Jones who was undergoing IRT and visiting Training Command HQ. The accident was due to asymmetric fuelling of the aircraft – when one side ran out of fuel, the flow proportioner, which equalised usage from both sides, cut the fuel flow off from the other side.
Sources:
1. http://web.archive.org/web/20121025182700/http://www.ejection-history.org.uk:80/Aircraft_by_Type/Folland_Gnat.htm
2. http://www.ukserials.com/losses-1979.htm
3. http://aerobaticteams.net/red-arrows-history.html
Media:
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 16-Jul-2011 12:04 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Cn, Operator, Total fatalities, Total occupants, Other fatalities, Location, Country, Phase, Departure airport, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 06-Jun-2013 20:48 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Operator, Source, Embed code, Narrative, ] |
| 07-Jul-2013 01:58 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Departure airport, Source, Narrative, ] |
| 14-Jul-2015 19:48 | Dr. John Smith | Updated [Operator, Destination airport, Embed code, ] |
| 23-Dec-2017 10:09 | Alex Ek | Updated [Total occupants, ] |
| 25-Jun-2018 12:35 | j155 | Updated [Operator, Total occupants, ] |
| 06-Oct-2021 16:09 | underdown | Updated [Operator, Narrative, ] |
| 07-Oct-2021 09:11 | underdown | Updated [Total occupants, ] |
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