TUNNOCK'S Tea Cakes have been deemed fit to fly by the RAF after a 60-year ban.
The iconic Scottish product was a favourite for those flying nuclear bombers on long training missions during the Cold War.
But they were added to the RAF’s no-fly list in the 1960s after some tea cakes were said to have exploded mid-flight.
It is said that it happened during a training mission in 1965, with pieces of chocolate and marshmallow getting all over the windscreen, flight controls and the men’s uniforms.
But now, the RAF Centre of Aerospace Medicine in Bedfordshire has conducted tests and found they are fit to fly.
The biscuits were rapidly lifted to 8000ft in a jet then rapidly decompressed to 25,000ft in three seconds.
While some marshmallow escaped, they did not explode.
The experiment was filmed by the British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS).
Dr Oliver Bird, a medical officer instructor who oversaw the tea cake tests, said he saw no reason why they couldn’t be taken on flights.
He also recommended freezing the tea cakes to make them more robust.
Hannah King, a producer and director who filmed the tests, said: “This was a critical piece of scientific testing. I’m just glad the RAF medics at the Centre of Aerospace Medicine stepped up and answered the question that everyone’s been wondering for so many years.
“It may be that the original tea cakes really did explode in a much more dangerous fashion. Perhaps the recipe has changed – who knows?
“But people ought to spread the word – it’s safe to fly with tea cakes.”
