A report from the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB), that has taken five years to compile, has revealed the cause of the crash was mechanical failure after a tail rotor bearing seized.
The crash was described as being “inevitable” as the failure in the bearing caused a steep right turn and the aircraft then spun out of control. Pilot Eric Swaffer could do “very little” to prevent the crash and was cleared of any errors.
As per the BBC, the helicopter’s voice recordings also revealed the pilot’s final words before the helicopter crashed. “I’ve no idea what’s going on,” he said shortly before the aircraft spun to the ground and landed on a concrete step.
