This is the moment a plane spotter missed his shot when his hat was blown off by a low-flying F-35 fighter jet along the Mach Loop.

Tom Pennington, 50, captured the ‘one-in-a-million’ snap while photographing jets taking on the low-level training drill along Talyllyn Pass.

The F-35 – which has a dizzying top speed of 1,200mph – roared overheard taking a group of plane spotters by surprise.

Ambulance technician Tom pictured the scene during the US Air Force military exercise on 12 May.

He said: “I’d been photographing wildlife for a few days and had got chatting to another amateur photographer who was there for the Mach Loop.

“You can never predict when the jets will fly overheard. The saying goes that to capture the planes you turn up early and stay late.

“I’d been there for a few hours when there was a rumble and suddenly out of nowhere this F-35 roared past.

“It was going so fast and was only about 400ft off the ground. I didn’t really know what pictures, if any, I had until I checked my camera.

“I was astonished to see that one of the photographer’s had missed the jet going overheard because the force of it had knocked his hat off.”

Since he posted the image on social media, the snap has been viewed and shared thousands of times.

Dad-of-two Tom, of Weobley, Herefordshire, said: “I’ve been very surprised by the reaction to the picture. So many people have seen it.

“I have no idea who he is but I’d like to send him a copy of the photograph.

“It’s one of those moments which is pretty much ‘one-in-a-million’ but when it happens you’re glad you had your camera pointed at it.”