A helicopter crash which killed 10 people could have been prevented if the pilot had followed emergency procedures relating to low fuel warnings, an inquiry has found.
The helicopter plunged onto the roof of the Clutha bar in Glasgow in November 2013 – killing pilot David Traill, two crew members and seven customers.
A fatal accident inquiry (FAI) took place before Sheriff Principal Craig Turnbull in Glasgow between April and August this year.
It heard how five low fuel warnings were acknowledged during the helicopter's final flight.
On Wednesday, the sheriff principal released his determinations about the crash in a report.
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He concluded that the Eurocopter EC135, manufactured by Airbus, crashed as a result of "fuel starvation" due to Captain Traill's "inexplicable" failure to follow the procedure set down in the pilot's checklist.
The engines of the aircraft, which was carrying out operations on behalf of Police Scotland, "flamed out sequentially while the helicopter was airborne, as a result of fuel starvation, due to depletion of the contents of the supply tank".
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The main issue, he said, was that Captain Traill allowed the supply tanks to deplete when there was plenty of usable fuel available in the main tank.
The report found that both the fuel transfer pump switches were in the off position when the low fuel triggered.
If one or both of them had been switched back on by the pilot, the helicopter would not have crashed.
Another way the accident could have been avoided is if Airbus included some kind of aural warning which activated where both fuel transfer pumps had been switched off, the sheriff principal said.
He determined that there were no defects which contributed to the accident and that no aspect of the training of pilots was a factor.
He also said that there was no evidence to suggest that Captain Traill deliberately caused the helicopter to crash.
However, he found that the quantities of fuel displayed on the fuel quantity indication system of the helicopter contradicted the low fuel warnings.
The sheriff principal concluded that Captain Traill &quoRead More – Source
