On 2 June 1994, RAF Chinook ZD576 flew into the Mull of Kintyre in dense fog, killing all 29 people aboard, including 25 senior Northern Ireland intelligence specialists. The aircraft had recently been converted to the HC.2 standard and suffered repeated technical incidents: its No. 1 engine was replaced after FADEC faults on 21 and 26 April 1994, a restricted collective-control mechanism was found on 10 May, emergency-power warnings appeared on 17 May, and a serious No. 2 engine incident occurred on 25 May. An independent 1993 review of only 18% of the HC.2 FADEC code found 486 anomalies before stopping, while 1994 Ministry of Defence testing described the software as “unverifiable” and unsuitable for its purpose.
An RAF inquiry in 1995 could not establish the cause, but two reviewing officers later accused pilots Flight Lieutenants Jonathan Tapper and Richard Cook of gross negligence for flying too fast and low in fog. A House of Commons inquiry in 2001 called that finding unjustified, and an independent review accepted in Parliament on 13 July 2011 cleared the pilots, concluding that the RAF had falsely declared regulatory compliance: the aircraft’s Controller Aircraft Release said its navigation and communications systems were not to be relied upon, yet the pilots were not told and the Chinook had no legitimate clearance to fly. Although later analysis found no conclusive evidence that FADEC caused the crash, the affair exposed failures in airworthiness certification, disclosure, cockpit recording, and accountability. Families were still seeking sealed documents and a fresh inquiry in 2025–2026.
