Plane crashed in Fife after cockpit burst open mid-flight

A light aircraft crashed in a field in Fife after its cockpit burst open mid-flight, according to an investigation into the accident.

An air crash report said the 70-year-old pilot heard "an almighty bang and a blast of air struck him, blowing off his headset".

The man experienced "significant handling difficulties" but survived the crash with minor injuries.

The pilot made a crash landing into a field near Kinglassie on 1 August.

During the landing the aircraft's fuselage, wings, propeller, canopy and undercarriage were damaged.

An Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) report said: "The pilot concluded that the most likely cause of the canopy opening in flight was an object fouling the right canopy latch mechanism when the canopy was closed for flight, thus leaving it insecure."

Witness David McKay, of car delivery business Fife Vehicle Transport, was driving on the outskirts of Kinglassie when he saw the aircraft in trouble.

He explained: "It was just right in the corner of my eye, I saw this plane do a somersault and I told the boys I was with but they just looked at me as if I was daft.

"We got to the end of Kinglassie and there in the field was this silver plane. I bumped the kerb and drove over the field and by the time we got there the guy was out, a bit shaken but seemed fine.

"He said the cockpit had opened during the flight and he'd been trying to shut it before he crashed. It's a miracle he's walked away from that."