Western Mail

‘Players on pitch stopped Afghan crash helicopter landing’ – inquest

- Georgina Stubbs newsdesk@walesonlin­e.co.uk

AHELICOPTE­R which crashed in Afghanista­n killing a Welsh airman was unable to land on a football pitch because there were players on it, an inquest has heard.

Flight Lieutenant Geraint ‘Roly’ Roberts, 44, from north Wales, died after a Puma Mk 2 helicopter crashed while landing at Nato’s Resolute Support mission headquarte­rs in the Afghan capital Kabul on October 11, 2015.

The British Air Force officer was killed alongside Flight Lieutenant Alan Scott, 32, from London, 44-year-old security worker Gordon Emin and two US personnel.

The inquest into their deaths at Oxford Coroner’s Court heard how five others were injured in the crash.

A service inquiry report into the incident, published in December last year, said the helicopter that the crew and passengers were in struck the tether of a nearby surveillan­ce balloon after being forced to re-circle the pitch.

Sergeant Simon Craig, who was flying as a crewman in the second Puma helicopter, in formation with the other, as they neared the landing site, said he expected the players on the pitch to move, but that they did not.

“On the approach I realised at the late stage there were a number of players on the pitch. We had to over-shoot to the east as we were unable to land on the field until it had been cleared,” he said.

During his evidence he told the inquest that they had landed on the field 30-40 times before, and that “over-shooting is standard practice if the landing site is unsuitable”.

Sgt Craig said they had been told about the balloon, also called a persistent threat detection system (PTDS), and to “look out for it”, but stressed that the cable it was attached to was “difficult to see”.

He said he did not see the other helicopter strike the tether, but heard “throttles” sounded over the radio, and that he saw it “pitching and rolling”, adding that “it was clear something had gone wrong”.

A friend of Flt Lt Scott for more than six years, Sgt Craig said he was “aware of his own limitation­s”, was a “good pilot” who “never made a dangerous approach into anywhere”.

During his evidence he also highlighte­d how he completed another tour in Afghanista­n from January to April this year, saying that the field is still being used by Afghan footballer­s to train on and as a landing site.

He added that the balloon is “still in the same position” but that “procedures have changed”, and said he did not see the pitch being used by players on any subsequent landing approaches during his latest deployment.

A statement from an unnamed US civilian passenger who survived the crash was also read out in court by Coroner Darren Salter.

Within in they described hearing a “loud pop”, before carrying on at a normal height and then told how the helicopter started to “jerk and drop”.

They said it felt as if the helicopter was being controlled as it fell, and for a few seconds they thought the pilot was trying to land.

The inquest also heard how Flt Lt Roberts died as a result of a “blunt force head injury”, which would also have caused him to become “deeply unconsciou­s and effectivel­y dead”.

A post mortem report by forensic pathologis­t Dr Nicholas Hunt said: “There was nothing those around could have done.”

The inquest heard Flt Lt Scott died as a result of “multiple injuries and a closed head injury” and Dr Hunt said he would have been “rendered deeply unconsciou­s on impact” and that his injuries were “not survivable”.

Both officers were members of the Puma helicopter force based at RAF Benson in Oxfordshir­e. The helicopter crashed at a road junction within the headquarte­r’s compound at around 4.15pm.

The inquest into the death of Mr Emin, who was born in Lyon, France but lived in Kabul, was also opened.

The court heard the cause of his death was a spinal fracture.

The inquest continues.

 ?? RAF ?? Flight Lieutenant­s Geraint ‘Roly’ Roberts, left, and Alan Scott
RAF Flight Lieutenant­s Geraint ‘Roly’ Roberts, left, and Alan Scott
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