Pilot is killed as helicopter crashes in field

A PILOT died when a helicopter crashed in a farmer’s field yesterday.

The civilian helicopter ‘nosedived’ to the ground after appearing to suffer a mechanical problem and burst into flames on impact.

Residents of the historic village of Aldborough, North Yorkshire, rushed to the wreckage but were unable to attempt a rescue because of the fire.

Police later confirmed the male pilot had died. There were no passengers.

Danny Cowing, 29, an agricultural scientist living nearby, said: ‘It was a ball of flames, there was nothing we could do. The helicopter was badly wrecked and you couldn’t imagine anyone surviving.

‘It came out of the clouds and nosedived down. One of the guys said the pilot tried to pull it up and it then hit the ground and blew up.

‘I had to stay well away but the fire brigade were here very quickly.’

A spokesman for North Yorkshire Police said: ‘One man, believed to be the pilot of the private aircraft, was pronounced dead at the scene. No further casualties have been reported.

‘Officers have cordoned off the area and conducted a search.’

Police said the Civil Aviation Authority would be carrying out an investigation into the cause of the crash.