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Pilot in helicopter crash that killed four says memory of cockpit filling with water haunts him

The upturned helicopter floating in the North Sea
The upturned helicopter floating in the North Sea

A helicopter pilot told an inquiry on Monday how he remains haunted every day by the image of his cockpit filling with water after crashing into the North Sea.

In a statement to a fatal accident inquiry into the tragedy, which killed four oil workers, Martin Miglans said he struggled to remember anything prior to the crash until the "horror and shock of seeing the sea".

Mr Miglans, his co-pilot and 12 other passengers survived when the Super Puma crashed on its approach to Sumburgh Airport, Shetland, in August 2013.

Sarah Darnley, 45, from Elgin, Moray; Gary McCrossan, 59, from Inverness; Duncan Munro, 46, from Bishop Auckland, County Durham, and George Allison, 57, from Winchester, Hampshire, died in the accident.

The first day of the inquiry also heard that the helicopter's pilots did not notice their reducing airspeed until it was too late.

A joint minute of agreement at the start, which set out the sequence of events and loss of life, concluded there was no evidence that a fault caused or contributed to the crash.

It said the helicopter was returning from the Borgsten Dolphin support platform to Sumburgh Airport, with its speed reducing as it descended.

When an alert sounded at 300ft the commander attempted recovery action but it was "highly likely unrecoverable", and the helicopter hit the water.

Salvage efforts to recover the helicopter and the bodies of the dead in August 2013 - PA
Salvage efforts to recover the helicopter and the bodies of the dead in August 2013 - PA

Ms Darnley, an offshore steward, and Mr Allison, a safety consultant, were found in the water among the debris and postmortem examinations said they had drowned.

Mr Munro, a production operative, also drowned but was found in the submerged fuselage still harnessed to his seat.

Mr McCrossan, a welder, managed to escape to a life raft but was then seen to suffer chest pains. Although he was winched onto a rescue helicopter, resuscitation attempts failed.

A postmortem examination showed he had been suffering from cardiac disease and it was thought the stress of the crash triggered his death.

Duncan Munro, 46, from Bishop Auckland, George Allison, 57, from Winchester, died in the crash - PA
Duncan Munro, 46, from Bishop Auckland, George Allison, 57, from Winchester, died in the crash - PA

The FAI was held virtually, having previously been delayed thanks to the pandemic.

In a written statement, Mr Miglans said: "It has destroyed my head. My world ended with that crash." He added: "The cockpit filling with water catches me every day."

He said he had no memory of speaking on a recording recovered from the aircraft, even after hearing it, saying he experiences "complete dissociation" from it.

Gary McCrossan, 59, from Inverness and and Sarah Darnley, 45, from Elgin
Gary McCrossan, 59, from Inverness and and Sarah Darnley, 45, from Elgin

"I just remember coming out of the cloud and there being water and that is it," he said in the statement.

"That is my nightmare to this day. I didn't understand how it could have happened."

Mr Miglans said he cannot remember check-height alerts prior to the crash. He said he sustained a fractured spine, now walks on crutches and will never fly again.

He also wrote that he has been diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder but does not want treatment or sympathy.

The inquiry also heard from Philip Sleight, deputy chief inspector of the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB).

He read parts of an AAIB report, published in 2016, which found the pilots failed to properly monitor the flight instruments and failed to notice their airspeed was decreasing until it was too late to avoid the Super Puma plunging into the sea.