Two pilots managed to avoid serious injury after a mid-air collision at an airshow in England. One landed his damaged airplane without incident, but the other had to bail out of his World War II fighter, deploying his parachute seconds before hitting the ground.

The accident occurred after three planes flew in formation at the Flying Legends Airshow near Duxford. As the pilots broke formation, the right wingtip of a 1950s era Douglas A-1 Skyraider, clipped the belly of a 1940s-era North American P-51 Mustang.

The Skyraider lost much of its right wingtip but landed without further damage. As the video above from David Taylor of FlyingFilm shows, the P-51 was violently tossed around by the collision, which hit the fighter just behind its iconic belly scoop/radiator. The pilot momentarily regained control before bailing out.

Both pilots showed amazing skill and quick reactions handling their damaged aircraft. But many in the aviation community are blaming the Skyraider pilot for breaking the fundamental rule of formation flying: Don’t hit the lead pilot. Typically, it is the job of the wingman to maintain visual contact and a safe distance from the lead pilot.

The P-51 pilot ended up with some bruises received after hitting the tail of the airplane on the way out. Amazingly, he suffered no serious injuries after the extremely low parachute deployment that occurred with just a few seconds to spare. In an interview with the BBC, the pilot describes the close call at the show earlier this month.

Video: David Taylor/FlyingFilm.co.uk, BBC