What caused Buccaneer XV345's wing failure at Red Flag

Was the crash of Blackburn Buccaneer XV345 an accident waiting to happen?

The fatigue problem made such a failure foreseeable, but the accident occurred during a high-G low-level maneuver outside the aircraft's intended operating limits.

The panel identifies a fatigue crack in the front spar as the immediate cause of Buccaneer XV345's wing failure during the 1980 Red Flag exercise. The aircraft was flying a high-G turn at low altitude, placing it outside the conditions in which the aging structure was expected to remain safe. Buccaneer wings had known strength limitations, and the individual airframe may already have accumulated substantial service. The accident was therefore foreseeable as a fleet-level fatigue problem even though the triggering maneuver also exceeded the normal operating envelope.