RAF airman who 'broke his back after boss encouraged him to leap from 50ft sea cliff' is suing MoD for £500k

Published: 07:33 EST, 10 November 2026 | Updated: 07:40 EST, 10 November 2026 An RAF airman who claimed he broke his back after a superior officer 'encouraged' him to leap from a 50ft sea cliff is suing the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for £500,000.Ciaran Macmillan crushed his lower spine after jumping off a cliff into the Mediterranean Sea with his colleagues at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus in May 2021.Having suffered an injured foot, reduced mobility and difficulty walking, the 29-year-old is now suing the MoD for half a million pounds in damages.He alleges that he should not have been allowed to jump from the cliff located on sovereign British military territory. The MoD has denied liability and refused to compensate the RAF serviceman insisting he was not on duty and was enjoying 'downtime' on the island.It added that Mr Macmillan understood the potential risk of injury when he leapt from the cliff. Then a senior aircraftsman, Mr Macmillan first jumped from a ten-foot-high ledge before claiming a senior non-commissioned officer (NCO) 'encouraged' him to leap from the 50-foot cliff edge.He had jumped from the lower cliff alongside four friends before he climbed up to the higher ledge, according to his barrister Craig Carr. RAF airman, Ciaran Macmillan, is suing the MoD for £500,000 after a superior officer 'encouraged' him to jump from a 50-foot sea cliffA corporal who recommended the cliff as an attraction 'was behind him on the ledge and encouraged him to jump from it into the water', Mr Carr claimed.The air and space operations specialist – who joined the RAF in 2016 – then leapt into the water and fractured his spine.'Upon jumping into the water, the claimant immediately lost sensation in his legs. He swam to rocks at the base of the cliffs and was assisted out of the water,' the barrister said.Following the accident, Mr Macmillan needed decompression surgery on the burst fracture to his lower back requiring screws and rods to stabilise him.His injuries left him with 'significant sensory disturbance' in his lower limbs and an awkward walking rhythm, according to High Court documents.'He can walk extremely short distances in the home without splints and his walking distance and ability outside is extremely limited, even with splints,' Mr Carr added. The accident has also left his client deskbound and no longer able to be deployed on active service.Mr Macmillan, from Waddington, Lincolnshire, is suing the MoD for negligence claiming RAF superiors 'permitted, allowed and encouraged its members of staff to use the cliff to jump 50 feet into the water'. The 29-year-old senior aircraftsman - who joined the RAF in 2016 - has been left deskbound according to his barristerHe claims that commanding officers at the base failed to take risk assessments, did not provide adequate training for the cliff jumps and failed to warn him of the potential risks involved.The cliffs where the accident took place were regularly assessed by local service personnel who encouraged using the area, Mr Macmillan's lawyers claimed. Soon after arriving on the airbase, he was taken to the cliff by a junior NCO who 'presented the area as one of the advantages of being based there'.Mr Macmillan's barrister argued that the MoD was liable through the NCO's actions urging him to jump into the water.But lawyers at the MoD dispute admitting liability for the accident.Defence barrister Daniel Laking argued that he courted disaster when he chose to take the jump: 'He chose to jump from a 50-foot cliff which was an inherently risky and obviously dangerous act. He was free to choose whether to jump or not.'The MoD said they had no duty of care at the time of the accident because Mr Macmillan was off duty enjoying 'downtime'.The cliff was also not the serviceman's workplace and the RAF was under no duty to make it safe.'The activity of cliff jumping was not part of his duties required by his employment,' Mr Laking added.Mr Macmillan’s claim has been filed at the High Court and will be listed for a trial at a later date, unless the parties are able to settle the case outside court. Do YOU have a story? Email Joshua.Haining@dailymail.co.uk