Inquiry into Clutha crash could last six months

A fatal accident inquiry into a police helicopter crash that claimed ten lives could last at least six months.

Seven customers, the pilot and two crew members were killed when a Police Scotland helicopter crashed on to the roof of the Clutha pub in Glasgow on 29 November, 2013.

The first of three preliminary hearings ahead of the full fatal accident inquiry (FAI) took place at Hampden Park stadium in Glasgow yesterday.

Family members, Police Scotland, Airbus Helicopters and the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) are among those represented at the inquiry.

Sheriff Principal Craig Turnbull, who is overseeing the FAI, said it would be “lengthy and complex”.

The hearing opened with a reading of the names of those who died.

Sheriff Turnbull said: “The purpose of the FAI is to establish the circumstances of the deaths and secondly to consider what steps if any might be taken to prevent further deaths in similar circumstances.

“It is not the purpose of the FAI to establish civil or criminal liability.”

The Crown is considering whether it might be possible to commission a 3D interactive model.