Aerobatic Team Ejections

Date	Air Force	A'cft	Unit / Serial	based	crashed	crew	photo	seat
August 1953	USN	Grumman F9F-6 Cougar		Blue Angel	flying from N.Y. factory Bethpage to NAS Corpus Christi, Texas as part of Blue Angels formation. Horizontal stabiliser actuator failure led to uncontrollable supersonic dive	Capt. Ray Hawkins became the first USN pilot to eject through the canopy. He ejected at 40,000ft due to loss of control. Pulled away from his manual seat at 29,000ft.		Grumman
1958	IIAF	F-84G Thunderjet		Golden Crown Aerobatic Display Team		Capt. Siamak Jahanbini
1963	IIAF	F-86 Sabre		Golden Crown Aerobatic Display Team	Crashed during practice flight	*1st Lt. Esmaeel Memari*
1963	IIAF	F-86 Sabre		Golden Crown Aerobatic Display Team	Crashed during practice flight	*1st Lt. Ghasem Farajwan*
6th June 1963	RAF	Lightning F.Mk 1A	XM 179/Y	56 Sqn "Firebirds"	Collision during practice "bomb burst" for the Paris Air Show with Lightning F.1A XM 181/J. Crashed Great Bricet, Suffolk. XM174 landed safely at Wattisham	Flt. Lt. Michael Cooke ejected at 400-430 knots I.A.S. at 800ft. sustaining serious injuries to neck		Martin-Baker Mk.4BS
FEEDBACK	". . . Regarding the Firebird (56 Sqn) ejection at Watisham by Michael Cooke. I have seen this misreported before, & have made comment. As an armourer on the squadron with more than a little interest in the ejection. I was a member of the ground crew watching the practice for the Paris Show. The accident occurred after the actual main practice was over. The team was performing the usual formation final pass. This broke the team into two "V" 5s. The procedure was whilst about mid runway for the 2 wing men to break L & R simultaneously, followed by the inner 2 whilst the lead plane continued straight on. They all then banked into line astern for a landing. However, on this occasion The wing men broke as normal but Flt Lt Cooke banked too quickly behind the left wing man, & he was actually underneath & slightly behind the other plane & therefore, unsighted. Our hearts were in our mouths at this point, & Mr Cooke quickly realised his mistake & was trying to bank away when the wing man straightened up. That's when the wing tip was broken off the now stricken plane . . ." Tom Taylor in email 24th June 2008
??/??/1966	IIAF	F-86 Sabre				Capt. Nosrat Abdoulahifard ejected safely		NAA
??/??/1966	IIAF	F-86 Sabre		Golden Crown Aerobatic Display Team 1st FIS / 1st FIW Mehrabad AFB, Iran Bird Strike prior to a show		Capt. Nosrat Abdoulahifard ejected safely		NAA
1st February 1967	USN	F-11	Blue Angels	El Centro	During practice flight. Aircraft stalled during a 1/2 cuban 8 maneuver at low altitude, spun into ground.	Frank Gallagher		No ejection
1969	IIAF	F-86 Sabre		Golden Crown Aerobatic Display Team		1st Lt. Masoud Teymouri
16-Dec-69	RAF	Folland Gnat T1	XR992	Red Arrow CFS	aircraft abandoned following report of engine fire. Cirencester, Gloucestershire	Pilot ejected minor injuries		Folland
16-Dec-69	RAF	Folland Gnat T1	XR995	Red Arrow CFS	aircraft abandoned after erroneous call that engine was on fire - fire warning was given to XR995. Cirencester, Gloucestershire	Pilot ejected minor injuries		Folland
13-Nov-70	RAF	Folland Gnat T1	XR994	Red Arrow CFS	Engine failure during aerobatics practice - Red Arrows RAF Kemble	Pilot ejected OK		Folland
1971	IIAF	F-5A Freedom Fighter		Golden Crown Aerobatic Display Team		1st Lt. Esmaeel Ghayour killed
Friday 4th June 1971	USN	F‑4J Phantom II	Blue Angels	Blue Angels	Caught fire during practice. Crashed over Narragansett Bay near the ex-NAS Quonset Point in Rhode Island.	Cmdr Harley Hall ejected [see also 27th January 1973]		Martin-Baker
8th March 1973	USN	F‑4J Phantom II	153079	Blue Angels	Collision with other Blue Angels F-4Js Superstition Mountains, CA, USA	Capt. J. R. Fogg Lt. Cdr. D. K. Bently Lt. M. D. Wiits who was in which aircraft ??? all photos courtesy of Len Mozey Blue Angels Alumni Association		Martin-Baker
8th March 1973	USN	F‑4J Phantom II	153080	Blue Angels	Collision with other Blue Angels F-4Js Superstition Mountains, CA, USA			Martin-Baker
8th March 1973	USN	F‑4J Phantom II	153083	Blue Angels	Collision with other Blue Angels F-4Js Superstition Mountains, CA, USA			Martin-Baker
8th July 1973	USN	F-4J Phantom II	Blue Angels		Crashed in Lake Charles, LA. Ejection sequence happened after the plane bounced off the runway	Steve D. Lambert ejected at very low altitude.		Martin-Baker
26th July 1973	USN	F‑4J Blue Angels 4	153081	NAS Lakehurst, NJ, USA	collided at low level with 153072 during arrival practice	3 crew killed ADJ.1C Gerald Harvey ejected safely WHO WAS IN WHICH AIRCRAFT ???		Martin-Baker
26th July 1973		F‑4J Blue Angels1	153072	NAS Lakehurst, NJ, USA	collided at low level with 153081 during arrival practice			Martin-Baker

Blue Angel ??	Captain Mike Murphy, USMC		Blue Angel ??	Pilot Lieutenant Commander Skip Umstead, USN Killed
Blue Angel ??	???		Blue Angel ??	ADJ.1C Gerald Harvey ejected safely

1974	IIAF	F-5A Freedom Fighter		Golden Crown Aerobatic Display Team	Crashed during practice flight	Capt. Jalal Payami killed
03-Mar-78	RAF	Folland Gnat T1	XR981	Red Arrow CFS	RAF Kemble. Red Arrows - Struck ground whilst practising aerobatics	Flt. Lt. Stephen Edward Noble - killed		Folland
	RAF	Folland Gnat T1	XR981	Red Arrow CFS		Wg. Cdr. Dennis George Hazell AFC - killed		Folland
	XR981 happened during pre-season practice, specifically while the team were practicing roll-backs at low altitude. The aircraft ended up inverted and neither occupant left the aircraft. One seat fired, but I can’t remember which, but couldn’t go anywhere. Steve Noble survived initially but died later that day.
17th May 1980	RAF			Red Arrows	Crashed into the sea off Brighton after colliding with a yacht's mast which had ignored a sailing ban during the display	Squadron Leader S. R. JOHNSON ejected at mast height		Martin-Baker
17th May 1980	RAF	Hawk T.1	XX262	Red Arrows		Squadron Leader S. R. JOHNSON ejected at mast height		Martin-Baker
21st March 1984	RAF	Hawk T1	XX251	Red Arrows	Hit the ground during display practice at Akrotiri, Cyprus The impact forced the ejection seat through the canopy and deployed the chute dragging the pilot out	Inadvertent ejection		Martin-Baker
31st August 1984	RAF	Hawk T1	XX257	Red Arrows	Suffered failure of a rotor blade in the low pressure compressor while taking part in a display over Sidmouth, Devon	Flt. Lt. P.D. Lees flew the aircraft out to sea where he ejected		Martin-Baker
13th July 1985	USN	A‑4F	154992 6	Blue Angels	collided with A‑4F 155029 on the top of a loop during display, Niagara Falls IAP, NY, USA photos via Blue Angels Alumni			Escapac
13th July 1985	USN	A‑4F	154992 6	Blue Angels		LCdr Mike Gershon killed	Lt. Andy Caputi ejected safely	Escapac
3rd November 1986	RAF	Hawk T1A	XX297	Red Arrows	Engine surged and cut after the aircraft flew into the jet wash of the leading aircraft. Unable to relight the engine During a display practice at Scampton, Lincs	Flt. Lt. D. Findlay		Martin-Baker
10th March 1988	RAAF	MB-326H Macchi	A7-046 or A7-049	Roulettes aerobatic team (RAAF/CFS)	Collided in mid-air 2 nm northeast of RAAF East Sale, Vic during aerobatic practice with another MB.326H (A7-054) over RAAF Base Laverton, near East Sale, Victoria. A7-054 landed at Laverton, East Sale with undercarriage retracted. RAAF	Flt. Lt. R. Crispin ejected at 4,000 ft and 200 kts with only minor injuries		Martin-Baker
24th June 1988	RAF	Hawk T.1 of the Red Arrows	XX304	Red Arrows RAF Scampton	crashed on take-off from RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire. Pilot, Sqn Ldr Pete Collins, .	Sqn. Ldr. Pete J. Collins deputy leader, ejected suffered back and facial injuries		Martin-Baker
	8-6-1989 Soviet MiG 29A Fulcrum crashed during display routine at the Paris Air Salon. Pilot ejected safely. [afm/au/6/89] (see notes and photographs in file on Anatoly Kvotchur !) NOTE TO MYSELF !!!!!							K-36
23-1-1990	US	F-18A Hornet	161524	"Blue Angels"	Mid-air collision with another Blue Angels F/A‑18A which landed safely, p . El Centro, California, Superstition mountains, CA, USA	Pilot ejected		Martin-Baker
	23-1-1990 USN "Blue Angels" F-18A Hornet. El Centro, California, USA. Mid-air collision between two aircraft. Pilot of one ejected the other landed safely. [FLIGHT p42/8-14/5/91] see report on [afm/ap/52/90]
24th July 1993	Russian	MiG-29 Fulcrum	526, c/n 25887	collided in mid-air at IAT Fairford.		Pilot ejected	pilots Alexander Beschastonov and Sergey Tresvyatsky r Air show IAT Fairford.	K-36
24th July 1993	Russian	MiG-29 Fulcrum	925, c/n 15564	collided in mid-air at IAT Fairford.		Pilot ejected		K-36
2nd October 1993	SAAF	Herman Potgieter via Nick Elzinga Atlas Impala Mk.I 489 (Falcon 5)			85 JFS "Silver Falcons" Crashed at Lanseria Airport after structural failure	Pilot Charlie Rudnick initiated ejection sequence half a second before impact. He came out horizontally with fuselage vertical and a high downward velocity. He was killed when "sucked" into the crash fireball	Herman Potgieter via Nick Elzinga The ejection showing parachute deployment	Martin-Baker
FEEDBACK	Charlie Rudnick had just broken away from the formation as #5 to do the solo routine. His first loop was almost complete when the RH wing broke off at the root. He ejected way out of the seats envelope – high ROD, too close to the ground. The fact that he got out is commendable as the wing snapped under around 6G and the rotation rate was very high. His chute was still streaming at ground impact. I spoke to various people that reached the scene and was told that he suffered massive trauma due impact with the trees and ground. I don’t think he died as a result of being sucked into the fireball, but rather due to hitting the trees/ground. I know all this as I saw the whole thing. He was a squadron buddy of mine. Regards Leon Mare [in email 21st January 2007]
21st March 1994 09:30 hrs	Canadian Forces	CT-114 Tutor	114079	431 Sqn "Snowbirds".	Engine failure during an air show practice, about 18 miles south of CFB Moose Jaw engine failure causing minor injuries to wo airmen. t	Pilot ejected		Weber CL-41
21st March 1994 09:30 hrs	Canadian Forces	CT-114 Tutor	114079	431 Sqn "Snowbirds".		Was there another crew member??
12th December 1995	Russian		Russian Knights Debrizey AB			Boris Grigorev killed	Two slightly differing reports emerged One pilot from the two seat Su-27B is thought to have ejected at too low an altitude and was killed in crash (who ??) ". . . They ejected on impact... They were in their seats."	Zvezda K-36
						Alexandr Sirojov killed
						Nikolaj Kordukov killed
				Three aircraft lost in Vietnam one Su-27UB and two Su-27 were lost		Nikolaj Grecanov killed
Thursday 17th October 1998	RAF	Hawk T1A	XX252	Red Arrows 'Red 2',	crashed landed short of the runway at RAF Cranwell, returning from a practice flight	Flt. Lt. Dick Edwards		Martin-Baker
10th December 1998	CAF	CT-114 Tutor		431 Sqn Snowbirds No. 2	mid-air collision during a training flight	Capt. Mike Vandenbos ejected - parachute not fully deployed when he hit the ground - died on impact		Weber CL.41

12th June 1999	Russian AF	Su-30MK-1 '01'		Paris Airshow, Le Bourget				Zvezda K-36
						Navigator Vladimir Shendrikh ejected	Pilot Viacheslav Averyanov ejected	Zvezda K-36

Thursday 29th October 1999	USN	F/A-18 Hornet	Blue Angels	MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga	crashed during a training flight			no ejections
Thursday 29th October 1999	USN	F/A-18 Hornet	Blue Angels	MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga	crashed during a training flight	Lt. Cmdr. Kieron O'Connor killed	Lt. Kevin Colling killed	no ejections
21st/22nd January 2001	Zimbabwe	Shenyang F-7			Pilot became disoriented at night while on way to take part in flypast at Laurent Kabila's funeral ejected. He was found alive in the jungle by Zimbabwean troops five days later	Wing Commander ????? ejected		JALI
Tuesday 22nd January 2001	Zimbabwe	Shenyang F-7			Pilot part in flypast at Laurent Kabila's funeral couldn't land as preceding jet had crash landed and blocked the runway.			JALI
Thursday 21st June 2001	CAF	CT-114 Tutor	???	431 Sqn Snowbirds	DND mid-air collision over Lake Eerie both and were picked up by a military helicopter	Major Robert "Bob" Painchaud		Weber CL.41
Thursday 21st June 2001	CAF	CT-114 Tutor	???	431 Sqn Snowbirds		Sgt. David Wilson ejected		Weber CL.41
10th June 2001	Russian Air Force	L-39 Albatros		*Team Rusj*	*mid-air collision between two of Team Rusj's aircraft 5 and 7 at an airshow in St. Petersburg, Russia*	ejected safely		VS-1
10th June 2001	Russian Air Force	L-39 Albatros		*Team Rusj*		Sergey Maksimov ejected, at low level, inverted into the ground and killed		VS-1
5th February 2002	Royal Saudi Air Force	Hawk Mk. 65A	8803	Green Falcons aerobatic team	collided during a formation landing on approach to their home base of Tabuk	Pilot ejected minor injuries		Martin-Baker
5th February 2002	Royal Saudi Air Force	Hawk Mk. 65A	8804	Green Falcons aerobatic team		Pilot ejected minor injuries		Martin-Baker
11 April 2002	FAF	Alpha Jet	E-175, F-TERL Number 4	Patrouille de France	Salon-de-Provence in south-east France	Flt. Lt. Daniel Marchand ejected at low level and was killed upon impact		Martin-Baker
27th July 2002	Ukrainian Air Force	Su-27UB						Zvezda K-36
27th July 2002	Ukrainian Air Force	Su-27UB	L'vov-Sknilov Airshow 83 spectators killed, 115 injured The two pilots their unit commanders and later charged and imprisoned			Volodimir Toponar	Yuri Egorov	Zvezda K-36
2nd August 2002	RAF	Harrier GR7	Suffolk air show - on the seafront at Lowestoft the aircraft seemed to lose power and plunged 60 feet into the water				Flight Lieutenant Tony Cann ejected to safety and suffered a broken ankle	Martin-Baker

Sunday 27th October 2002	Italian A. F.	MB-339	MM54486	Frecce Tricolori number 10 Rivolto	birdstrike while landing at their home base following a flypast display	pilot - ejected		Martin-Baker
						crew member - ejected		Martin-Baker

1st December 2004	USN	F/A‑18A		Blue Angel	Hit water 6 M offshore in Gulf of Mexico nr Perdido Key, FL, USA	Lieutenant Ted Steelman ejected safely	Martin-Baker SJU-5A
Friday 10th December 2004	CAF	CT-114 Tutor		431 Sqn Snowbirds	Mid-air collision Friday morning while on a routine practice flight over southern Saskatchewan.Miles Selby in other aircraft was killed and did not eject	Capt. Chuck Mallett was "ejected" still in his seat and manually released himself	Weber CL-41
Friday, 21st January 2005 10:00h	RAAF	PC/9-A	Roulette Five	RAAF Roulettes display team SALE RAAF AFB	collided near the East Sale RAAF with another Pilatus PC/9-A piloted by Flight-Lieutenant Mark Ellis	Flight Lieutenant Roland “Arnie” Morscheck ejected at only 300 ft	Martin-Baker AU11A
Sunday 24th July 2005	Royal Saudi AF	Hawk	Display Team - Saudi Arabia	file photo		Ejected	Martin-Baker SA10B
Sunday 24th July 2005	Royal Saudi AF	Hawk	Display Team - Saudi Arabia	file photo		Ejected	Martin-Baker SA10B
Wednesday 24th August 2005	CAF	CT-114 Tutor	114120 No. 8 in team	431 Sqn Snowbirds	in Thunder Bay in north western Ontario while on route to airshow	Captain Andrew "Andy" Mackay	Weber CL.41