A NORTH Yorkshire-based RAF pilot made a heroic landing at a Norwegian airfield when the engine on his Hawk aircraft failed at 40,000 ft.

Flight Lieutenant Geoff Shepherd, who is based at RAF Leeming, and his rear seat pilot, Lieutenant Ian Brosch, walked calmly away from the plane after bringing it to a halt only 50 feet from the end of a rain-soaked runway at Vigra, after having glided for more than 40 miles.

The crew had been flying from RAF Leeming to Bardufoss to attend an airshow when the aircraft suffered oil pressure problems and began to shake.

The situation rapidly worsened when, at 15,000 feet, the plane's single engine seized, effectively turning the aircraft into a very heavy glider. To make matters even more difficult, the airfield had no radar and some of its navigational equipment was unserviceable, and worse still, the cloud was reported to be from 20,000 feet to the ground.

An RAF spokesman said: " Flt Lt Shepherd, 39, elected to stay with his Hawk aircraft, glide out to sea and attempt to descend below the cloud away from high ground and populated areas. At a height of 6,500 feet he caught a glimpse of the sea and dived towards it, levelling off at just 800 feet above the waves. Unfortunately, due to the speed of his descent, the canopy misted over, making it impossible to see out of the front of the cockpit - ejecting from the aircraft was a very real possibility at this point."

It was not until they were within two miles of Vigra that Shepherd saw the runway through the cloud and rain and with the aircraft now very low and running out of speed it was only by Shepherd's skill and judgment that they landed safely.

However, with the engine shutdown, the aircraft's normal braking systems were inoperable and the crew were again prepared for an ejection attempt right up until the plane came to a halt.

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