RAF F4 Phantom

The aircraft is XV495 and the place is RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus in the Greek/Turkish war in 1974. The Pilot was Sqn Ldr Collier (aka Panweer) and the Nav was Flt Lt Tenant. Both 'walked' away from the crash. After having done a bump and roll, when the aircraft landed the second time both main wheels burst (the pilot swore he was heel and toeing and did not have both feet full on the rudder pedals and the brakes on) and the aircraft went for a trogg across the bondu. Fortunately neither ejected, especially as the pilots feet were trapped by the rudder pedals after the collapsed nose wheel distorted the cockpit floor and the drogue gun on the ejection seat had fired, so if the seat had fired he would probably have lost both feet and the parachute wouldn't have opened. Sadly Flt Lt Tenant was killed in a aircraft crash approx 2½ years later. XV495 arrived back at the Squadron post repair in late 1976 (marked up with sharks teeth and eyes and called 'Brewers Droop' (Brewer being the name of the engineering officer in charge of the repair).

Great information @Andrew Garton thanks for sharing it and welcome to MI.Net

Excellent information @Andrew Garton , thanks mate! I just love to hear the stories behind an image