Three RAF planes came within 50 metres of a mid-air collision as they flew above Cumbria, a report has revealed.

The pilot of a Tucano training plane managed to steer his aircraft between two Hawk jets as they headed towards each other over Lake Windermere.

A report into last September's incident called for improved safety equipment on low-flying aircraft.

It also condemned black paint used on Hawks which is meant to make them easier to see against clear blue skies.

The planes were training over Lake Windermere

The UK Airprox Board - which investigates near misses - said the two Hawks were on military manoeuvres at the time.

The pilots of the Hawks did not see the Tucano plane, despite having its landing light illuminated.

And the pilot of the light aircraft was not aware of the Hawks until they were within 50 metres of each other.

The Airprox Board raised the need for a collision warning system - similar to the one used in passenger planes - in a report into a similar near miss over Newcastle last year.

But the RAF says the collision warning system it is developing will not be ready until 2005.

The Airprox Board report said it was "sheer fate" the three planes did not hit each other.

It stated: "This is just such a case where a collision warning system (CWS) would have alerted each other sufficiently early for effective avoidance manoeuvres.

"The need is urgent and ought to be emphasised yet again.

"Meanwhile, there is a growing feeling that a black colour scheme may be best against a nice blue sky, but against European countryside it is only marginally better than camouflage."

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said: "We have a programme of enhancements for our aircraft to make them more conspicuous and avoid any sort of collision.

"We are obviously very much aware of the risks associated with flying and flight safety remains our highest priority."