The family of a pilot whose Red Arrows jet crash landed just after take-off, told today of their relief that he was safe.

Flt Lt Dave Stobie, 34, formerly of Bucknell Road, Bicester, aborted his take-off after a bird was sucked into the engine of his Hawk jet at RAF Brize Norton on Monday.

The plane was badly damaged when it skidded along the runway but Flt Lt Stobie and his engineer, Cpl Steve Gardner, walked away unscathed.

Flt Lt Stobie's mother, Kath Stobie, 65, said at her Yorkshire home: "Apparently the first thing he said after the crash landing was 'my poor little plane, it's all covered in foam'. "But we're pleased he's okay. We were a little bit shaken when his girlfriend first broke the news to us.

"We tend not to worry too much about him, because if we did, we would be nervous wrecks by now.

"We're very proud of him especially when we see him perform at shows. He's absolutely brilliant and he has always wanted to be a pilot since he was five."

Mrs Stobie and her husband Cleph worked at the Upper Heyford air base until they retired eight years ago and moved to Yorkshire. Their son went to Bicester School and was a member of the 2507 (Bicester) Air Training Corps.

He rose to become a cadet warrant officer and gained a private pilot's licence through a flying scholarship.

Although he left the town after joining the RAF in 1983, he and his family have remained in contact with the town's Air Training Corps. Mrs Stobie said: "He enjoyed his time with the Air Training Corps and although we haven't lived there for a long time, we still have many friends in the area."

Flt Lt Stobie organised for the Red Arrows to be the star attraction at last year's Kirtlington fete when they took part in a breathtaking display.

Flt Lt Stobie, who has been with the Red Arrows for three years, is one of the synchronised pair pilots and performs death-defying cross-over manoeuvres at speeds of several hundred miles per hour.

His tour with the team ends in October and he will undertake a conversion course to fly Harrier jump jets.

After three years of flying Harriers, Flt Lt Stobie is expected to leave the RAF and work as a commercial pilot for an airline.

He left yesterday for the Paris Show with the Red Arrows team. He is expected to return to RAF Cranwell, where the team is based, tomorrow.

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