Free Republic

Former RAF fighter pilot Mark Williams, 50, who lives near Grantham, Lincolnshire, said he looked in the mirrors of the RAF Tornado to check on colleague Mike Harland but saw ''nothing''. Mr Williams was flying the fighter-bomber upside down around 5,000 feet above Norfolk in November 2007 when Mr Harland fell to his death while strapped in his seat. The inquest in Norwich has heard that Mr Harland's ejector seat had not been properly fitted. Experts think it slipped when the plane was inverted, automatically causing the rear part of the cockpit canopy to shatter. Jurors have heard that the...

The German air force has commenced test activities with the first of a planned 85 Panavia Tornado aircraft to be upgraded to a so-called ASSTA 2 operating configuration. Prepared by EADS Military Air Systems using an electronic combat and reconnaissance variant aircraft, the modernisation introduces improved cockpit displays and countermeasures equipment. EADS expects to update 62 Tornados to the ASSTA 2 standard after the completion of flight tests by the air force’s WTD-61 test squadron, with the service to modify the rest of its retained fleet in Erding. The Luftwaffe plans to continue flying 85 Tornados until around 2020, after...