Poor airmanship, unsafe, imprudent and unreasonable: McRae is blamed for crash

The deaths of former world rallying champion Colin McRae and three others in a helicopter crash could have been avoided if Mr McRae had not flown dangerously low and at high speed, a sheriff ruled yesterday.

Mr McRae, 39, his five-year-old son Johnny, the boy’s six-year-old friend Ben Porcelli and Graeme Duncan, 37, all died when the aircraft came down near Mr McRae’s home in Lanark on 15 September 2007 as he flew home from a trip to see a friend.

Sheriff Nikola Stewart, who heard a fatal accident inquiry over 12 days at Lanark Sheriff Court, concluded that the deaths could have been avoided if Mr McRae had not engaged in low-level flying “when it was unnecessary and unsafe to do so”.

In her written determination issued, the sheriff concluded: “The deaths and the accident resulting in the deaths might have been avoided had Mr McRae not flown his helicopter into the Mouse Valley.

“For a private pilot such as Mr McRae, lacking the necessary training, experience or requirement to do so, embarking upon such demanding, low-level flying in such difficult terrain, was imprudent, unreasonable and contrary to the principles of good airmanship.”

The ruling states that the accident happened when, because of an “unknown occurrence”, the aircraft deviated from its intended flight path and crashed into trees lining the side of Mouse Valley. Mr McRae’s attempts to avoid crashing failed because of the position and speed of the helicopter, the sheriff ruled.

As part of the hearing, the sheriff and lawyers involved in the case visited the woods near Mr McRae’s Jerviswood House home where the Eurocopter Squirrel aircraft crashed. One of the crash victims, Mr Duncan, filmed much of the outbound and return flights on his personal camcorder and some of the footage was recovered and included in the inquiry hearings.

Sheriff Stewart wrote: “The video recording provides detailed information as to the manner in which Mr McRae piloted G-CBHL that day. He consistently flew the helicopter at unnecessarily low heights.

“He clearly breached the 500-feet minimum separation requirement on at least one occasion when he detoured to fly at 275 feet over farm buildings, and may well have done so on others.

He undertook significant manoeuvring at low level and the helicopter seems to have encountered significant g-loading as a result, to the evident enjoyment of his passengers.

“The episodes of extremely low-level flying and the excessive manoeuvre parameters, particularly the descent into the valley by Larkhall, all as captured on the video recording, are indicative of an aircraft being flown imprudently, without due regard to the principles of good airmanship and in such a way that normal safety margins would be reduced.”

To fly an aircraft in the UK, it is necessary to hold a pilot’s licence and a valid medical certificate, and to have the licence validated with the type of aircraft to be flown.

Sheriff Stewart found Mr McRae did not hold a valid flying licence or a valid “rating” for the Eurocopter Squirrel helicopter.

Jimmy McRae, Mr McRae’s father, said he hoped the family would be able to “move forward” following the findings.

He said: “The past four years have been extremely difficult for all the families concerned.”

“We still believe we will never know what caused the crash but we were never in any doubt as to Colin’s prowess as a fine pilot.

“Everybody knows from Colin’s rallying career that safety is always an issue. and that his reactions and eye and hand co-ordination were world-class”

A spokesman for Mr McRae’s widow, Alison, said last night the family would be making no further comment.

The McRae family’s solicitor, Peter Watson, said: “Although Colin’s licence was out-of-date, this played no contributory factor whatsoever to the accident.”