Five bodies now recovered from copter crash wreckage

tragedy: Group were travelling to confirmation service when aircraft went down

The bodies of all five family members who died when their helicopter crashed in Snowdonia have been recovered by rescue workers.

The victims have been identified as Kevin and Ruth Burke aged 56 and 49, Donald and Sharon Burke aged 55 and 48, and Barry Burke, 51, all from the greater Milton Keynes area, North Wales Police said.

The three men, believed to be brothers travelling with two of their wives, were on the way to a family confirmation service when the helicopter crashed, according to the Irish Independent.

Their bodies were found with the wreckage of the helicopter in the Rhinog mountains near Trawsfynydd on Thursday, following a major search which began on Wednesday when the privately-owned Twin Squirrel aircraft failed to arrive in Dublin.

Chief Inspector Richie Green, at North Wales Police, said: “Shortly before 3.30pm this afternoon the last of the five who were on board the helicopter were recovered and they have now been transported to a local hospital’s mortuary.

“Thames Valley Police family liaison officers have informed family members and we can now begin the very difficult process of formal identification.

“We’ll continue to support the family ...Our thoughts remain with the extended family and their friends.”

He also thanked the 80-plus police officers and rescue workers involved.

Kevin and Ruth Burke, from Hulcote near Milton Keynes – close to where the helicopter took off – were directors of Staske Construction, which owned a Twin Squirrel.

The three brothers were the sons of an Irish couple who emigrated to Britain, according to the Irish Independent.

Now the bodies have been recovered, a joint investigation led by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) “will begin in earnest”, Mr Green said.

PA. RAF mountain rescue service vehicles on a road at Trawsfynydd in the Snowdonia mountain range in north Wales, near where the helicopter came down.