I don't Agree and neither does the official accident report.

something caused it and they could find no apparant fault with the chopper so something else must have led to it falling to the ground??

steve

 

Yes. Him flying too low (eyewitness) hitting a tree (30 foot BELOW its top) then not being able to stop the thing from crashing. (extreme maneuver)

 

the only stuff ive read makes it clear he shouldnt have been flying that copter in the first place with no licence for him or the copter and that he was flying in an erratic manner and attemting manouveres on the limit of that copters capabilities and somethings went wrong, possibly the passenger accidentally hitting the dual control sending it into freefall and causing the deaths of those on board.
who knows for sure as we werent there but those in the know that investigate these things are best placed to make an informed guess.
if that is indeed the case then the fact he was a famous figure shouldnt absolve any blame from his part.

 

having flown that type of helicopter i would say it was well within limits as to how he was flying it, however IMHO i would say he was attempting to do a wing over and he ended up down wind, this in turn would make it impossible to gain altitude after the manoeuvre and unfortunately he ran out of luck as he had trees in front of him.

here is a similar manoeuvre that the pilot only just managed to pull of, he was lucky not to kill his pax and all the spectators.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6kwxAMjUW8

 

and here is Dennis Kenyon's helicopter crash, one of the worlds best stunt pilots, even they get it wrong

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwZILBd-mNI

 

Well the farther made that discussion to take his son into the aircraft with colin. It's just get's me how everybody turns on each other when money is involved. I bet it was not the first time they went up with colin in the aircraft ?


So if he took them out in his rally car and pushed it to the limits on a rally day and had a major crash who would be to blame as he was one of the most highly experienced drivers out there ?

 

theres no doubt even the experts can get it wrong but doesnt that reinforce the bad judgement/negligence of someone who apparently didnt hold a valid licence and hadnt been recently evaluated for competence to attempt such a stunt?

 

would it be acceptible for me to crash my car with a father and child as passengers whilst attempting some dangerous driving manouveres if i didnt have a valid licence? would the blame be put on the passenger dad for allowing him and his son to be there in the first place?
what ifs dont matter because thats not what happened.

 

Well it's happened and no one can turn back time. The only people who know what happened for real are no longer here

 

The licensing issue is media sensationalism and is irrelevant to the accident IMO.

his risky flying IS and issue. BUT if they were up on a joyride just for the fun and stunts then they were aware of some of the risks. Just like if you take a mate out to show off and he knows your doing it for a laugh then if you crash its just an accident aint it.

Just like the reyland crash was an accident. No ones slating him, and if theyd been killed i wouldnt expect people to slate him.

Is was an accident, end of!! sure Macrae fucked up and it was probably avoidable but that dont make him a cunt because of it.

Of course the family want someone to blame, then they can offload all the hate and anger on to him. Unhealthy way of grieving IMO, but thats what people do but then the family are NOT able to remain objective about such things. The family will always be biased.

 

about the best post here

 

the accident seems to have been caused by someones reckless behaviour.someone that would have known the possible consequences for such behaviour. if he had chosen not to fly in such a manner it wouldnt have happened.but he did . sole responsibility rests with the pilot no matter who it was.
if i was to take someone out in my car and crash whilst showing off id be up in front of the judge to cop the blame so you cant just say its an accident because ultimately its someones fault.

 

As much as I don't want it to be the fault of Colin, on the evidence at the moment it doesn't look good.

I live in the town that Colin left from, we used to see him flying quite regularly overhead. I know the route he took and the terrrain over which he flew. This area is part of the Clyde Valley. A deep valley runs all the way from Larkhall to Lanark with a lot of heavy woodland as well.

The fact of the matter is, that to get from Point A (Larkhall) to Point B (Lanark) is a very straightforward flight. No obstacles and no airport traffic to worry about. It is 95% over woodland and farm land, probably less than 10miles as the crow flies. If he had went straight from Point A to Point B he would probably still be here today. However he chose not to do that and through his choice, chose a more riskier route involving dipping down below the treeline and weaving in and out of the valley. It would be like racing on the backroads in your car instead of taking the bypass.

I'm gutted that it happened, but if Colin was irresponsible then he will get the blame. A lot of people around here knew Colin, and chances were if you were into cars in any form then Colin would have known you as well. no-one I know had a bad word to say about him or his family and tbh all this now, is just as shocking as the accident itself.

SMG

 

Awesome driver but showing off in a helicopter resulting in multiple deaths makes him responsible both morally and his estate should financially compensate those that have lost relatives. Flying without a valid license therefore flight insurance means even if it was a genuine accident he is automatically in the wrong FACT.

 

what gets me is, if colin was flying so dangerously etc etc the dad was in the helicopter surely he would have told him to calm down?

 

The father of the Porcelli kid wasn't on the plane... IIRC, Graeme Duncan was visiting Colin on that day and just came along for the ride when offered and Ben Porcelli was good friends with Colins son Johnny, and was round at the house seeing him.


Cheers,
Grant

 

colin was the only dad in the helicopter.