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A Red Arrows jet missed a civilian plane by just 100 feet after taking off - sparking an investigation by officials. The pilot did not see the civilian aircraft until he was flying over it, the UK Airprox Board ruled. The incident happened on August 20, 2017, at 4.49pm, as the Red Arrow jet left Biggin Hill, near London. The civilian aircraft was flying from Farnborough, Hampshire. The information has been released by the Airprox board from a meeting held earlier this year. It was ruled that the two pilots saw each other at the same time. The report states: "This incident occurred in a busy area of airspace during a particularly high workload portion of the mission – departure and rejoin of multiple Hawks for onward transit. "Without a surveillance-based Air Traffic Service, the Hawk pilot was relying on his own lookout to avoid other aircraft." The civilian aircraft was first seen slightly left of the nose. The report added that both pilots felt no avoiding action was necessary after seeing each other as the hawk jet, used by the Red Arrows, was in a left hand turn and the pilot of the civilian plane judged that "adequate separation already existed". The report added: "The Board quickly agreed that it had effectively been a non-sighting by the Hawk pilot in that he had only seen the C172 as he passed over it, and then too late to take avoiding action. "The Board spent some time assessing the risk. "The radar replay indicated that the two aircraft were in very close proximity, but both pilots estimated the separation to be more than the 100ft shown." There was a debate among the board as to whether the event was a Category B risk rating - where the safety had been compromised - but it was eventually agreed the event was a Category C rating. This meant there was no risk of collision because the risk was averted or there was no risk in the first place.
The UK Airprox Board reveals a Red Arrows jet came within 100ft of collision with a civilian plane last year.