The controlled crash landing of a light aircraft near Kirkwall was down to a hydraulic pipe “coming off”.
Scottish Fire and Rescue Service’s Raymond Fallon said “by all accounts, it was the perfect landing” and the plane was put down with just “inches either side, between two farm buildings”.
This information was given during a meeting of Orkney Islands Council’s police and fire sub-committee on Tuesday.
Mr Fallon added that it was “very, very well done”.
This was in spite of the fault leaving the pilot unable to control the aircraft.
The plane came down on farmland near Wideford Hill on the afternoon of December 17.
The incident was tweeted by Orkney police. The pilot, who was the only person on board, was reportedly not injured.
The plane crash was included in the fire service’s road accident figures for the county for October 1 to December 31.
There were six accidents in Orkney in 2021-22.
A separate incident saw a full emergency at Kirkwall Airport as a pilot’s landing gear light had not come on during a landing.
Mr Fallon said this left the pilot unable to confirm whether the landing gear was down.
However, the gear had worked normally and no service from the fire service was needed.
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch has said the controlled crash is still being investigated.
They expect to publish their findings in the next few months.
