An 88-year-old farmer has described the terrifying moment an RAF fighter jet crashed and erupted into flames just yards from holiday caravans and a family home in Anglesey.
Richard Owen, who owns Afallon Caravan Park near Rhosneigr, said he initially paid little attention when he heard a loud bang on Wednesday morning. Living only a couple of miles from RAF Valley, he was accustomed to aircraft flying overhead.
But a second explosion was followed by flames and thick black smoke.
“I went out to take a look. There were little bits of wreckage all around the site,” Mr Owen said.
“The tail section must have blown off and landed next to one of the caravans. There was lots of smoke, thick black smoke. I didn’t dare to go too close. I was worried about it exploding.”
The crash involved an RAF Hawk T2 training aircraft, which came down near Pencarnisiog on Anglesey shortly after taking off from RAF Valley.
Dramatic footage showed the aircraft behaving erratically before both pilots ejected. The jet then plunged towards the ground and exploded in a huge fireball.
Both pilots, who are understood to be students at the RAF’s No 4 Flying Training School, were located shortly afterwards and were receiving medical treatment for what were described as minor injuries.
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An enormous fireball erupted as an RAF jet crashed near the village of Rhosneigr on Anglesey
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A huge piece of debris, seemingly from the plane’s tail, landed just yards from a caravan
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A large pile of twisted metal was still burning when locals went to inspect it
‘It was basically on fire’
Witnesses said the aircraft appeared to be in serious trouble almost immediately after take-off.
Pete Bennett told North Wales Live that he saw an orange flame coming from the aircraft as it accelerated from the runway.
“I knew straight away that it was in trouble,” he said.
“As it gained altitude, the flame disappeared but it was clearly in trouble. It climbed at an aggressive pitch. It pitched twice violently in the air and then there were two clear loud bangs.”
Another witness said he had watched the aircraft take off before telling his wife: “It’s in trouble as I could see flames.”
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Both pilots ejected safely after the Hawk T2 training aircraft crashed moments after taking off
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Spectacular footage shows the moment both pilots made their escape from the aircraft
He said the jet continued climbing before pitching violently twice. The two pilots then ejected, with the aircraft crashing about a mile away.
Shelley, another local resident, said she watched the incident unfold from her home office window.
She had been working when she heard the explosion and immediately called 999.
“I said, ‘All of them!’” she recalled, after being asked which emergency service she needed.
While still on the phone, she saw the two parachutes descending.
“That was a relief as it hopefully meant everyone was ok,” she said.
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Witnesses described seeing flames coming from the Hawk T2 training aircraft after it took off from RAF Valley
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The pilots were located shortly after the crash and are being treated for minor injuries
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The Hawk T2 plummeted to the ground moments after taking off, with witnesses reporting a ‘big bang’ and flames coming from the jet
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The aircraft jerked violently before careering vertically towards the ground
Wreckage landed beside caravans
At Afallon Caravan Park, Mr Owen said he was particularly relieved that most of his 30 caravans were empty at the time.
Although debris was scattered around the area, the vehicles were largely unscathed. One large section of wreckage, apparently from the aircraft’s tail, landed just yards from a caravan.
Mr Owen said RAF police arrived roughly 15 minutes after the crash, while a helicopter reached the pilots within “a minute or two”.
A local source claimed the aircraft had recently undergone repairs to a faulty component and was conducting a test flight, although the Ministry of Defence declined to confirm whether that was the case.
The RAF said only that an incident involving an RAF T2 Hawk aircraft operating from RAF Valley had occurred near Anglesey and that an investigation was underway.
North Wales Police urged members of the public to stay away from the area while emergency services dealt with the scene.
North Wales Fire and Rescue Service later said the fire was under control but asked people to continue avoiding the area while crews carried out their work.
Cause of crash remains under investigation
Aviation security expert Julian Bray said it was too early to determine exactly what caused the crash.
He told the Daily Mail that the fact both pilots ejected indicated the situation had become extremely serious.
Possible explanations could include an engine problem, a malfunction or, less likely, a bird strike, although he stressed that investigators would need to establish what happened.
Mr Bray also explained the dramatic white flash visible as the pilots ejected was likely to have been the activation of the Martin-Baker ejection seats fitted to the Hawk T2.
The system is designed to propel the pilots clear of the aircraft extremely quickly, using a rocket beneath the seat.
The British-made ejection seats have saved the lives of more than 7,800 service personnel around the world since their development.
RAF grounds Hawk fleet
Following the crash, the RAF halted flights involving its Hawk T1 and T2 aircraft while the investigation continues.
The Hawk has a long history within British military aviation. The aircraft is described by the RAF as a high-performance, two-seat training jet designed to replicate the demands of flying front-line combat aircraft such as the Typhoon.
RAF Valley is home to No 4 Flying Training School and plays a central role in preparing Britain’s next generation of fighter pilots.
The Hawk fleet was previously grounded in January 2023 after concerns emerged when a blade failed during an incident on the runway at RAF Valley. Operations resumed the following month.
RAF Valley has also been the site of previous serious incidents. In 2018, an RAF engineer serving with the Red Arrows was killed and a pilot was badly injured when a Hawk T1 stalled and crashed shortly after take-off.
A subsequent inquest ruled the death avoidable and highlighted previous consideration by the Ministry of Defence of installing a stall-warning system on Hawk aircraft following a 2007 crash at Mona Airfield near Bodffordd.
For residents living beneath the RAF Valley flight path, the latest crash has once again brought those risks into sharp focus.
One local woman said aircraft were regularly taking off from the base from around 8am, often flying low and loudly over the surrounding area.
“It’s good nobody was hurt this time. But it makes me so nervous,” she said.
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said an investigation was underway and that his thoughts were “first and foremost with the pilots”.
For Mr Owen and his neighbours, the investigation will now determine what caused the aircraft to fail so soon after take-off — and how a potentially devastating crash ended with the two pilots able to escape before the Hawk struck the ground.