During Operation Unified Protector, Malta saw many diversions from coalition forces aircraft. In this particular diversion, the Tornado GR4 experienced a hydraulic failure and performed an emergency landing at the Malta International Airport. Notice the red-hot brakes on landing.
I personally remember this event as it happened. It was a Thursday night, we had just finished the day's work for the Malta International Airshow 2011 which was set to start in two days time, featuring the famous Libyan Air Force Mirage F.1s that diverted earlier that year.
We where just about to order our dinner when we heard the 'Malta Radar' controller giving an emergency squawk to an aircraft with a radio failure. The controller was calling him OUP***, so by that we already knew it was a military aircraft engaged in Operation Unified Protector over Libya. We immediately turned back to the airfield and about four minutes after the initial contact the Tornado pilot finally manages to establish radio contact with Malta, but it wasn't just the radio failure that was wrong with the aircraft.
The pilot declared a MAYDAY due to a hydraulic failure. By the tone of his voice, you could tell that it was a very serious problem. He landed just a few minutes (21:10 local time) after the mayday call and no one was hurt but had he been further away, a search and rescue operation would have had to be called.
The Tornado sat on the runway for almost 12 hours after landing as the brakes had literally welded with the wheel and it could not be towed normally. An RAF C-130H flew in early next morning with a carriage to tow the Tornado off the runway and into the Air Malta hangar to assess the damages and start repairs.
The Tornado eventually left Malta about a week after the incident.
We where just about to order our dinner when we heard the 'Malta Radar' controller giving an emergency squawk to an aircraft with a radio failure. The controller was calling him OUP***, so by that we already knew it was a military aircraft engaged in Operation Unified Protector over Libya. We immediately turned back to the airfield and about four minutes after the initial contact the Tornado pilot finally manages to establish radio contact with Malta, but it wasn't just the radio failure that was wrong with the aircraft.
The pilot declared a MAYDAY due to a hydraulic failure. By the tone of his voice, you could tell that it was a very serious problem. He landed just a few minutes (21:10 local time) after the mayday call and no one was hurt but had he been further away, a search and rescue operation would have had to be called.
The Tornado sat on the runway for almost 12 hours after landing as the brakes had literally welded with the wheel and it could not be towed normally. An RAF C-130H flew in early next morning with a carriage to tow the Tornado off the runway and into the Air Malta hangar to assess the damages and start repairs.
The Tornado eventually left Malta about a week after the incident.
Nicolai Schembri