What happened
The incident occurred during a night training exercise when the crew departed from RAF St Athan with the intended destination of RAF Cleave. While en route, the aircraft experienced a mechanical failure involving one of its engines. This malfunction forced the pilot to execute an emergency ditching in shallow waters located off the coast of Bude.
Following the impact with the water, all four individuals on board successfully evacuated the cabin. However, only three of them managed to reach the shore safely. The pilot did not survive the incident and drowned. The other three crew members were rescued after reaching land.