The Nimrod Disasters

Photo by Mike Freer - Touchdown-aviation

The Hawker Siddeley Nimrod maritime patrol aircraft first came on the scene during the Cold War in 1967 and would go on to have a successful career spanning 44 years before being retired to be replaced by the new Poseidon’s. But during that career a number of crashes blighted the excellent safety record of this workhorse of the skies.

A modified version of the De Havilland Comet, itself a plane with a chequered history, the aircraft suffered its first disaster on 17^th November 1980 when a multiple bird strike upon take off from RAF Kinloss caused the Nimrod XV256 to crash into a wooded area killing two pilots. The rest of the crew survived.

Four years later a flare ignited on board Nimrod XV257 and the crew landed the aircraft and successfully evacuated. Although there were no casualties the aircraft was written off.

It would be over a decade before the next crash and in this case two happened within months of each other. XW666 had taken off from RAF Kinloss on 16^th May 1995 for a routine test flight, on board were the crew of seven and everything seemed to be going well. But 35 minutes after take off the engine warning light signified that engine number 4 was on fire. While the crew were performing their normal operating procedures engine number 3 light illuminated. The crew realised that this was a precarious position and the decision was taken to attempt to land on the water. Incredibly they ditched the aircraft in a controlled manner and the seven crew were all rescued, the wreckage sinking into the Moray Firth. The aircraft was later recovered.

On 2 September 1995 the Nimrod XV239 was taking part in the Canadian International Air Show much to the delight of the thousands who had come to see the three-day event that is held in Toronto annually. The seven crew members prepared the aircraft and it took off from Pearson Airport for its allocated display slot, the weather being very good for the display and with cameras rolling the entire time. As the aircraft made its mid-air turns it suddenly dived into the waters of Lake Ontario to the horror of all those watching. All seven crew were killed. The crash was blamed on the aircraft stalling at low speed and gaps in training were identified for crews taking part in air shows.

2^nd September became a tragic anniversary for another reason 11 years later when XV230 carrying 14 crew members was taking part in a mid-air refuelling over Kandahar, Afghanistan. The aircraft was on a routine reconnaissance mission on Taliban insurgents and all seemed well on board until suddenly a fire erupted on board. The crew attempted to land the Nimrod but witnesses then saw the entire aircraft explode and the burning wreckage scatter over the land below. There were no survivors. An inquiry established that there had been previous issues of fuel leaks and others began to highlight the safety of such an old aircraft that by now had been serving for almost four decades.

So an aircraft with a career spanning so long had quite a fan following and was always a welcome sight at air shows, but it was the right thing to do to withdraw this aircraft from service. The loss of five aircraft in its lifetime shows that the crews were highly trained and despite the loss of life these crews were professional to the end. Today there are memorials to the loss of the aircraft over Afghanistan and the cockpit salvaged from the Moray Firth crash is today on display at the South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum in Doncaster. A bench at the National Memorial Arboretum pays tribute to all victims of the crashes.