Ministry of Defence says 'big bang' heard over England was sonic boom
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The Ministry of Defence tonight confirmed that a loud bang heard over parts of England was in fact a sonic boom.
Police in Oxfordshire had been investigating reports of a loud bang in the area.
The noise prompted a flurry of speculation as to its cause on the social networking site Twitter, with some initially suggesting it was a gas explosion.
Residents in the West Midlands, Warwickshire, Oxfordshire, Somerset and Wiltshire reported hearing what sounded like an explosion at just after 6pm.
The fire and rescue services said they had sent two vehicles to investigate the noise but had been unable to find any cause.
The British Geological Survey had also said they were investigating.
However, The Ministry of Defence said this evening that the noise was in fact a sonic boom from RAF aircraft, that had been authorised to go supersonic over land.
The MoD later said that the two RAF Typhoons had taken off following an emergency call, transmitted on the wrong frequency, from a helicopter.
The MoD stressed tonight that at no point was there any threat to civilians, and that the Typhoon aircraft, from the Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) based in Lincolnshire, were scrambled after a helicopter pilot accidentally emitted an emergency signal.
The Typhoons were already on their way to the helicopter by the time the pilot realised his mistake.
The noise was reportedly heard in Rugby, Oxford, Coventry, Swindon and Bath.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments