Fatal crash helicopter load was too heavy

A BUSINESSMAN died after crashing an “overweight” army helicopter carrying four passengers during a Fortiesthemed event.

Nigel Feetham, 36, misjudged the extra weight on board his SE-313B Alouette II helicopter and ploughed the 50-year-old aircraft into the turf.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) found the four passengers on board exceeded the flight manual limitation for maximum weight of 1,361kg (795lbs) by 15kg (33lbs).

The helicopter pitched nose-down and an audible “crack” was heard as the two main rotor blades struck the tail boom. The aircraft rotated 180 degrees and crashed along the runway at Breighton Aerodrome, near Selby, North Yorks.

All four passengers sustained head, back, chest and leg injuries, and the pilot died in hospital a week later.

The investigation found Mr Feetham, of Hull, East Yorkshire, who was the managing director of HPS Systems, had been inviting people for flights during the World War Two airfield’s Forties-themed weekend event, featuring classic aircraft and vehicles on July 17 last year.