The RAF Hawk narrowly missed a farmhouse

The Ministry of Defence has said tests revealed that a herring gull was to blame for the accident near RAF Vallley on Anglesey in which a pilot was injured in February 2002.

Two similar crashes have been attributed to birds in the past two months.

A Military Aircraft accident summary into the crash explained how the pilot of the Hawk T1 XX352 aircraft ejected after failing to regain control of it following the birdstrike.

The plane crashed onto farmland and was totally destroyed but the pilot suffered minor injuries.

No-one on the ground was hurt but, as the jet crashed, it passed within 20m of a farmhouse, said the report.

The occupants of the house were on holiday in Australia at the time.

The jet had just taken off from RAF Valley on a weather check sortie when the pilot saw a large bird pass to the right of the aircraft. He then heard a loud thump.

The pilot diagnosed an "engine surge" and, as he began a climbing turn back towards the airfield, he immediately tried to "relight" the engine.

An RAF Harrier crashed in similar circumstances

The report said: "This was unsuccessful and, assessing that by then the aircraft had descended to approaching 300ft, he made the decision to eject."

It went on to describe that the remains of a herring gull were found in the engine, and concluded that a birdstrike was the cause.

At the time of the accident, the emergency services told BBC Wales that the jet crashed in a field, kept going through a dry stone wall, crossed a road and cleared a six-foot wall before crashing and bursting into flames.

"The pilot ejected safely and was picked up and taken to Ysbyty Gwynedd, the hospital in Bangor, with back injuries," said a North Wales Police spokesman.

There have been numerous similar jet accidents involving birds. The most recent was in August, when an RAF fighter pilot had to make an emergency crash landing in his Harrier.

The pilot was forced to crash-land at the nearest air base - RAF St Athan, near Barry in south Wales - but he was not injured during the landing.

The previous month, it emerged that a direct hit from a bird may have caused another RAF Hawk to crash into a field in North Yorkshire.

The pilot of the Hawk trainer - who was from RAF Valley - ejected and was taken to hospital in Scarborough by air ambulance where he received treatment for minor injuries.