Image copyright Ministry of Defence Image caption Flt Lt Sean Cunningham died after being ejected from his aircraft in 2011

An ejection seat firm has admitted breaching health and safety laws over the death of a Red Arrows pilot.

Flt Lt Sean Cunningham, 35, was ejected unexpectedly from his jet while it was on the ground at RAF Scampton in 2011.

But the parachute on the seat did not then deploy and the South African-born airman was fatally injured.

Martin-Baker Aircraft Ltd pleaded guilty at Lincoln Crown Court to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

Company director John Martin entered the plea on behalf of the company, based near Uxbridge.

The firm is due to be sentenced on 12 February.

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Image copyright PA Image caption The ejection seat on Flt Lt Cunningham's Hawk T1 fired while he was carrying out pre-flight checks

An inquest into Flt Lt Cunningham's death heard he was fired 300ft up into the air on 8 November before he hit the ground with "tremendous" force.

The Iraq war veteran, who grew up in Coventry, had been carrying out pre-flight safety checks in his Hawk T1 jet when the seat fired.

It emerged during the hearing in 2014 that the ejection seat firing handle had been left in an unsafe position meaning it could accidentally activate the seat.

It is thought one of Flt Lt Cunningham's seat straps had pulled it into this unsafe position on a sortie four days earlier.

'Entirely useless'

Flt Lt Cunningham's parachute failed to deploy because a nut and bolt had been fastened too tightly.

Martin-Baker had been aware of the possibility of the parachute mechanism jamming as early as 1990, the inquest was told.

Coroner Stuart Fisher described the seats' safety mechanism as "entirely useless" and criticised the company for failing to warn the RAF about safety issues.

The Crown Prosecution Service considered possible manslaughter charges but said there was insufficient evidence.

However, the Health and Safety Executive announced in September 2016 it intended to prosecute Martin-Baker Aircraft.

In a statement issued by the firm after entering the guilty plea, it said: "It should be noted that this was an isolated failure relating to the tightening of a nut during maintenance procedures conducted by RAF Aerobatic Team mechanics."

It added its ejection seats were in use by 92 air forces and had saved 7,059 lives over the past 73 years.

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