A United States colonel in command of the Patriot battery that shot down a British Tornado jet after mistaking it for an inbound Iraqi missile resulting in the deaths of two pilots has apologised for the incident today.

US Army Colonel Tim Glaeser made a personal visit to the Tornado base at Ali Al Salem in Kuwait to apologise to the RAF detachment commander Group Captain Simon Dobb and to pass o­n condolences to the families of the dead.

"Without pre-judging a board of inquiry, we have resolved certain issues to obtain cast iron guarantees that a mistake like this cannot happen again," Dobb said.

"The Americans have made a rapid and prudent re-evaluation of Patriot rules of engagement. I can categorically assure my crews that there is no danger of inadvertent engagement," he was quoted as saying in a Bernama-AFX report.

He said their meeting was "civil" and added the colonel had been instructed to visit the detachment o­n the orders of his general.

Dobb added that Sunday's tragedy would not damage relations between US and British battle planners.

Software glitch

The RAF commander said a software "glitch" caused the Patriot radar to read the Tornado as a missile, despite the jet emitting its own individual signature but declined to reveal any further details.

The US lieutenant at the Patriot battery o­n the Kuwait/Iraq border was faced with a split second decision. She pressed the button to launch the surface to air missile.

She o­nly realised the mistake when she had no corroboration of an incoming missile from other monitoring locations.

It has emerged that the lead Tornado in a formation returning from a bombing raid over Iraq witnessed the Patriot launch and took immediate evasive action.

Wing Commander Derek Watson radioed a warning and released chaff and flares to distract the missile, which he presumed was Iraqi.

Watson landed at this base in northern Kuwait unaware that the Patriot had caught the second Tornado at three times the speed of sound.

The pilot and navigator had no time to get out of its way and died instantly.

The missile had locked o­n to the second Tornado after the Patriot battery radar indicated that the jet was an Iraqi anti-radiation missile.

The wreckage has been located in the desert in northwest Kuwait and the bodies of the two aircrew have been recovered. The area has now been quarantined pending an inquiry. The aircrew have not been named.

Tornado missions over Baghdad continued day and night without interruption.