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The recently restored Handley Page Victor, a vital part of Britain’s nuclear deterrent in the 1950s and 1960s, was intended only to taxi along a runway in front of spectators, before stopping for photographs, at a Leicestershire airshow.

Bob Prothero, a retired RAF group captain from Portsmouth, was on the flight deck, with an engineer as co-pilot. As the aircraft gathered speed, Mr Prothero instructed the co-pilot to slow the aircraft, but instead he increased the throttle — and then froze. The 75-tonne V-bomber rapidly reached take-off speed and began to climb. As it lumbered into the air, reaching 150ft, it veered to the left — heading towards a housing estate.

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Mr Prothero, who last flew a Victor in the 1980s and whose flying licence had long since expired, was faced with a split-second decision: “I was petrified. Everything was pure instinct,” he said. “I was shouting at the co-pilot to pull the throttle back. I saw the nose rise into the air. I thought, ‘Oh God here we go, how are we going to get out of this one?’.”

Mr Prothero could try to land the aircraft immediately — but risked missing the runway and crashing. Or he could fly the heavy aircraft around before landing. “I had to make a snap decision. I pointed the nose down and noticed we were well and truly airborne, but because of the crosswind we were not over the runway. Thankfully, I managed to pitch the aircraft back towards the runway and away from any spectators.”

Mr Prothero landed the aircraft — named Teasin’ Tina — without a scratch. He described the event as the “most terrifying nine seconds of my life”.

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Amateur footage shows the plane, which was flying in from Berlin’s Tegel airport with 73 passengers and five crew members on board, landing on a protective layer of foam as flames appear from the undercarriage.

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Contact Air, which operated the flight said all the passengers were able to leave the plane via its emergency slides.

One passenger was slightly injured and a stewardess was taken to a hospital for observation.

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FlightCaster predicts flight delays using an algorithm that scours data on every domestic flight for the past 10 years and matches it to present conditions. When you look up your flight, FlightCaster estimates the chances of delays along with reasons for the delay. Using this information you can then get a jumpstart on rebooking your flight while everyone else is still waiting for a plane that will arrive late.

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FlightCaster predicts flight delays using an algorithm that scours data on every domestic flight for the past 10 years and matches it to present conditions. When you look up your flight, FlightCaster estimates the chances of delays along with reasons for the delay. Using this information you can then get a jumpstart on rebooking your flight while everyone else is still waiting for a plane that will arrive late.

As TechCrunch points out, this service could be a godsend for business travelers who are typically more comfortable rebooking flights. For now the service only works for domestic flights. You can check your flight status on FlightCaster’s Web site, or with its iPhone and BlackBerry apps, which will both will cost $5 for a limited time.

[ Visit FlightCaster ]

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