Move Follows Accident Saturday Involving Hawker Hunter Airplane

The U.K. Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has placed an immediate restriction on certain "high energy" maneuvers by vintage aircraft in the wake of an accident Saturday that resulted in multiple fatal injuries of people on the ground near the Shoreham Airshow.

The pilot, identified as British Airways pilot Andy Hill, reportedly survived the accident, and is in critical condition at a hospital. The U.K. newspaper The Daily Mail reports he was pulled from the burning wreckage of the Hawker Hunter after the accident.

In a notice posted online, the CAA says that following the accident it immediately began an urgent review and have place a series of immediate restrictions and changes to UK civil air displays:

• As a precaution, on Saturday 22 August we took steps to ensure no further flights were made by Hawker Hunter aircraft - this temporary restriction remains in place.
• Flying displays over land by vintage jet aircraft will be significantly restricted until further notice. They will be limited to flypasts, which means "high energy" aerobatics will not be permitted
• The CAA will conduct additional risk assessments on all forthcoming civil air displays to establish if additional measures should be introduced.

The safety standards that must be met by all major civil air displays in the UK are among the very highest in the world and are regularly reviewed. All air display arrangements, including the pilots and aircraft, must meet rigorous safety requirements. Individual display pilots are only granted approval following a thorough test of their abilities.

The CAA will continue to offer every assistance to the Air Accidents Investigation Branch as it seeks to establish the cause of the accident. The CAA will also act promptly in response to any emerging indications from the AAIB’s investigation.

Further details will be provided in the coming days and we will continue to work with the industry to ensure the most appropriate action is taken as a result of this review.

(Hawker Hunter pictured in public domain file photo. Not accident airplane)

FMI: www.caa.co.uk