27-03-2025
Dummy missile crashes through roof of Cornwall home
A homeowner was left with a 'gaping hole' in her roof after a military plane's winch malfunctioned, releasing a number of metal objects.
Sue Rundle's home was damaged after a target, a dummy missile, and 'many metres of cable' fell from the sky above Tregaswith, near the town of St Columb Major in Cornwall.
Photographs show the dummy missile lodged in a tree after the winch released it at around 4pm on Thursday.
Ms Rundle said the experience was 'horrifically frightening', adding: 'Suddenly, there were slates falling. I went back inside the house and then everything collapsed upstairs and the noise was horrendous.'
She told how a 'gaping hole' was left in the roof and her lavatory bowl was shattered and surrounded by concrete debris.
'It could have been fatal if I had been outside at the time and certainly if I had been in the bathroom,' she added. 'I'm very fortunate. Things could have been very different.'
Draken, a US civilian provider of tactical fighter aircraft, apologised for the incident.
Nic Anderson, its chief executive, said the routine Royal Navy exercise went wrong when an aircraft's winch failed to retract and then release a target cable.
A target cable is used to throw a target drone or other device behind the aircraft, allowing for realistic missile testing.
He added: 'The mechanism to control the target cable malfunctioned. We could neither wind that back in or release it and discharge it into the sea.'
The back-up procedure, to release the target and cable from the aircraft over the sea, also failed, according to Mr Anderson.
'Realising they were unable to detach the target, the crew contacted air traffic control to declare an emergency landing and sought to land at the nearest diversion airfield at Cornwall Airport Newquay,' he added.
But on the way to the airfield, the cable and target dislodged and landed in a field, 'regrettably damaging two properties', he said.
'We have stopped all target towing activity and will not resume until we are satisfied the system is safe to operate.'
The Air Accident Investigations Branch has said it was aware of the incident.
Newquay Airport said it 'safely accommodated the landing of a military aircraft needing to abort an exercise' and it landed without incident.
Dr Guy Gratton, an associate professor of aviation and environment at Cranfield University, said incidents such as this happened about 10 to 15 times a year.
'For it to happen into property like this is incredibly rare, thankfully,' he said, adding it was more common over the sea or on farmland.
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