The grandma said her upstairs bathroom ‘collapsed’ when a military training device fell from a plane and crashed into her house, destroying the wall and her toilet
A Cornish grandma was “mere seconds” from death after a military device fell out of a plane and crashed into her house and loo.
Sue Rundle, from Tregsawith, near Saint Columb Major, has lived in the village for 26 years and has never had anything as wild as this happen. Rundle said her upstairs bathroom collapsed when the military training item crashed down from the plane and through her house, destroying a wall and her toilet.
She said: “It was lucky. I was about to go into the hallway when I heard tiles coming off the roof. I came in then everything in the upstairs bathroom collapsed. It was just mere seconds. Just seconds.” Another item landed in a tree nearby, which the grandma of two described as a “big piece of plastic like a dummy missile.”
Images show huge amounts of damage to Rundle’s bathroom and a massive hole in her toilet. American provider of tactical fighter Draken said they had been performing a training exercise nearby when the crew suffered a malfunction and headed to Cornwall Airport Newquay, reports CornwallLive.
The malfunction worsened over Rundle’s house. The incident happened on Wednesday, March 26, when a “very heavy piece of lead” less than a foot long and around four inches wide but “weighing a tonne” fell from the sky. Draken acknowledged the severity of what happened and is liaising with those affected.
The Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) launched an investigation following the incident, and Draken boss Nic Anderson has apologised and said the company has stopped all towing activity for the timebeing.
He said an aircraft was carrying out a routine exercise over the sea involving towing a target on a cable behind the aircraft, but the mechanism to control the target cable malfunctioned.
The aircraft crew carried out backup procedures to release the target and cable from the aircraft safely over the sea, but these were not successful.
They then declared an emergency and sought to land at the nearest diversion airport at Cornwall Airport, Newquay. But during the diversion the cable and target dislodged from the aircraft and landed in a field and damaged two properties.
Anderson said: “Draken is very sorry that this incident has occurred and offer our sincere apologies to those affected by it.” He said they are working with those impacted and providing them with full support to ensure the impact is minimised.
Anderson added: “We recognise the seriousness of the incident and are working with the Air Accidents Investigation Branch investigation and the local police while our full internal investigation into the matter continues to ensure that this does not happen again.”
Devon and Cornwall Police said officers attended the incident at Rundle’s home alongside Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service. Rundle said she was used to living under a flightpath, and she doesn’t blame the military or anyone else for the “freak accident.”
She Rundle said it is too early to put a price on the repairs that need to be made to her walls, roof and bathroom but that all parties involved in the incident and her home insurance are working on it.
A spokesperson for Newquay Airport said: “Yesterday, Cornwall Airport Newquay safely accommodated the landing of a military aircraft needing to abort an exercise. The aircraft, which was engaged in a training operation, followed standard procedures and landed without incident.
“Safety is always our top priority, and today’s successful handling of the situation is a testament to the professionalism of our team and demonstrates the airport’s capability to handle a range of aviation scenarios.”
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