Handley Page Victor - Accidents and Incidents

Accidents and Incidents

• 20 August 1959: XH668 a B2 of the A&AEE lost a pitot head and dived into the sea off Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire.
• 19 June 1960: XH617 a B1A of 57 Squadron caught fire in the air and was abandoned near Diss, Norfolk.
• 23 March 1962: XL159 a B2 of the A&AEE stalled and dived into a house at Stubton, Lincolnshire.
• 14 June 1962: XH613 a B1A of 15 Squadron lost power on all engines and was abandoned on approach to RAF Cottesmore.
• 16 June 1962: XA929 a B1 of 10 Squadron overshot the runway and broke up at RAF Akrotiri following an aborted takeoff.
• 2 October 1962: XA934 a B1 of 'A'Squadron, 232 OCU had an engine fail on takeoff from RAF Gaydon after which two engines failed on approach. The aircraft crashed into a copse several miles from RAF Gaydon. Of the four crew on board only the co-pilot survived.
• 20 March 1963: XM714 a B2 of 100 Squadron stalled after takeoff from RAF Wittering.
• 29 June 1966: XM716 a SR2 of 543 Squadron was giving a demonstration flight for the press and television at RAF Wyton. The aircraft had made one high-speed circuit and was flying low in a wide arc to return back over the airfield when the starboard wing was seen to break away and both it and the rest of the aircraft burst into flames. All four crew were killed. The aircraft was the first SR2 to enter service with the squadron, and released evidence suggests that it was overstressed.
• 19 August 1968: Victor K1 XH646 of 214 Squadron collided in midair near Holt, Norfolk in bad weather with a 213 Squadron English Electric Canberra WT325; all four crew members of the Victor died
• 10 May 1973: XL230 a SR2 of 543 Squadron bounced during landing at RAF Wyton and exploded.
• 24 March 1975: Victor K1A XH618 of 57 Squadron was involved in a midair collision with Hawker Siddeley Buccaneer XV156 during a simulated refuelling. The Buccaneer hit the Victor's tailplane causing the aircraft to crash into the sea 95 mi (153 km) east of Sunderland, County Durham.
• 15 October 1982: XL232 a K2 of No 55 Squadron suffered an uncontained turbine failure early in the take off run. The aircraft was stopped and the crew evacuated the aircraft with no injuries. Debris form the turbine penetrated a fuselage fuel tank, starting an uncontrolled fire, destroying the aircraft and damaging the runway.
• 19 June 1986 XL191 a K2 of 57 Squadron undershot approach in bad weather at Hamilton, Ontario.
• 3 May 2009: During a "fast taxi" run at Bruntingthorpe Aerodrome, XM715 made an unplanned brief flight, reaching a height of about 30 ft (9 m) at maximum. The aircraft did not have a permit to fly; however, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) stated that they would not be conducting an investigation. The co-pilot had failed to reply to the command "throttles back", the pilot then had to control the throttles himself, the confusion temporarily disrupting firm control of the aircraft.