A video of the crash shared on social media appears to show the two pilots ejecting from the aircraft before it nosedives, crashes and bursts into flames.
The footage shows a plume of smoke and fire erupting as the aircraft hits the ground, appearing to narrowly miss residential properties.
Kay – who hosts the BBC’s Security Brief – described footage of the pilots ejecting being caught on camera as “quite remarkable” and said the pilots’ ejection seat was “one of the big lifesavers in this whole story”.
He said there are two options for ejection that can be taken in a T2 jet – which usually involves an experienced pilot trainer and a student.
One option involves both pilots ejecting individually by pulling a black and yellow ring placed between their legs on the jet, the second option is called “command ejection” where one pilot ejects both seats, with whoever sitting at the back going first.
According to Kay, once the pilot decides to eject the seats, it sets off a miniature detonation cord (MDC), a thin explosive line that is used to shatter the canopy of a jet in the event of an emergency.
“The aircraft seat is designed for the pilot to be able to eject at zero speed and zero height, and that will allow enough time for the parachute to inflate, and then the pilots hit the ground,” he added.
“As far as I’m aware this is the first known case of this variant, the T2, ejecting pilots out of it,” he said, adding that the safety record for these jets is “obviously very good”.
