ALL Hawk T1 jets have been temporarily grounded by the Ministry of Defence after one of the aircraft operated by the Royal Navy crashed near Helston yesterday.

AN investigation has been launched after the Royal Navy Hawk T1 jet from 736 Naval Air Squadron smashed into the ground during a training exercise from RNAS Culdrose yesterday morning.

The two occupants of the Hawk ejected from the plane just seconds before it crashed into trees at St Martin near Helston at around 10am. It is thought to be the first ejection in the air by a Royal Navy crew since 2003.

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The crash took place in a field not far from Gear Farm, between Mawgan and St Martin. Picture SWNS

People were asked to stay away from incident site by police.

Devon and Cornwall Police said two people were treated at the scene in the St Martins area of Helston by ambulance crews and were taken to hospital.

A spokeswoman for the MOD said in a statement that it was temporarily grounding all Hawks as a safety measure: “Safety is our paramount concern. The RAF has decided to temporarily pause Hawk T1 operations, as a precautionary measure, while investigations are ongoing."

Defence Minister Johnny Mercer told the BBC the crash was due to "suspected engine failure".

"There's nothing more to it than that," he said. "They've had a problem, they've ejected, they've been picked up.

"We're assessing them and we'll have more information in due course."

The Hawk T1, has a top speed of more than 620mph and a range of more than 2,250km. It was taking part in a simulated ship attack in an exercise which included a vessel from the Royal Netherlands Navy. They are also operated by the Red Arrows.

Eyewitnesses reported hearing two loud bangs as the two pilots ejected and the plane flipped before hitting the ground.

The immediate aftermath of the crash was captured by off-duty firefighter Mark Nattrass who photographed the scene because he thought it was going to go up in flames.

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The scene immediately after the crash captured by off duty firefighter Mark Natrass

"I was home in my workshop," he said "and heard this great big bang, it was a double bang, must have been the ejector seats going.

"I came out of my workshop looked up and saw the plane coming over.

"I live right next to where it went down. I saw it come over, bank to the side and it hit the ground.

"Because I am a firefighter I drove over straight away. Amazingly there were no flames and I began to wonder if I had hallucinated it all. Because there was no smoke or flames it was difficult to find where it was.

"That's why I took the photo because there was aviation fuel everywhere and I thought it was going to burst into flames."

Parachutes and an ejector seat were spotted a mile away from the scene of the crash. A picture issued by Cornwall Air Ambulance showed a parachute in a tree. 

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The two pilots were treated by ambulance at the scene and one was taken to Derriford Hospital. Their injuries are not thought to be life-threatening or changing with one described as 'walking wounded'.

An investigation has now been launched by the Ministry of Defence who said in a statement: “Two pilots are being checked by medics after ejecting from a Royal Navy Hawk aircraft from 736 Naval Air Squadron during a flight from RNAS Culdrose. An investigation will begin in due course. We won’t be providing further detail at this time.”