New Pictures Shoreham crash pilot 'didn't get high enough to do a loop'

Mr Hill (pictured arriving at the Old Bailey on Wednesday) has denied manslaughter following the disaster 

The pilot accused of killing 11 people and injuring 16 after attempting a loop 'played fast and loose with rules and had a history of taking risks', a court heard. 

Jurors were told Andrew Hill was flying '1,000ft too low' and 'too slow' when the Hawker Hunter jet crashed and exploded into a fireball on the A27 while he was performing a loop at the Shoreham Airshow in August 2015.

The 54-year-old, of Sandon, Buntingford, Hertfordshire, denies 11 charges of manslaughter by gross negligence.

Prosecutor Tom Kark QC told the Old Bailey on Wednesday, that although normally considered a 'careful and competent' pilot, a string of incidents in the year before the crash suggested he sometimes took 'risks', 'playing fast and loose' with the rules and safety.

After one of the incidents the court heard he sent a text message to a friend which said '1 f*** up by me - suitably debriefed!'

The Civil Aviation Authority even considered taking away his permit to take part in displays.

Prosecution experts say the crash 'was the result of Mr Hill making an extremely poor and reckless decision at the top of the loop', Mr Kark said.

The incidents showed Hill was 'prepared to take a risk' with safety and exemplified a 'more cavalier attitude to safety than was inappropriate'.

He told the court of three incidents in 2014, a year before the crash, when there were concerns over his flying.

During a practice display for the Duxford airshow in Cambridgeshire, Hill flew over the crowd line and twice over the M11 much lower than permitted - at 200ft and 250ft rather than the 500ft.

He also flew over the Duxford Museum, which was regarded as a 'serious infringement', Mr Kark said.

Even though it was a practice run, Mr Kark said it showed Hill 'played fast and loose with the rules which are designed to keep people safe'.

Some 11 men were killed in the disaster which happened at 1.22pm on August 22 2015 (pictured: plumes of smoke rise in Shoreham)

At the 2014 Shoreham Airshow, he breached his display permit by flying over nearby Lancing College and the surrounding 'congested area', the court heard.

During this flight, he carried out the same stunt he was performing during the crash.

At the Southport Airshow near Blackpool, he 'performed a dangerous manoeuvre and his display was then halted' by a 'stop, stop, stop' call, Mr Kark said.

A text found on his phone to friend Dan Arlett, which said: '1 f*** up by me - suitably debriefed!' was 'relevant to the incident', Mr Kark said. 

Experienced pilots were among spectators who witnessed the 2015 crash, and had described the aircraft as flying too low and too slow, Mr Kark said.

Regular spectator David Miles 'started running as fast as he could away from the crash' and 'felt an enormous heat and fell to the floor', he told the court.

Jurors and a public gallery packed with relatives of the victims saw three separate video clips showing the display before the 1950s fighter jet disappeared behind trees and a fireball erupted into the air.

During one of the clips recorded at the West Sussex event, a commentator can be heard exclaiming 'ooh' as the aircraft can be seen flying low over the road.

Mr Hill's Hawker Hunter jet crashed onto the A27, killing 11 people, in August 2015. He is currently on trial at the Old Bailey

Hill, dressed in a black suit, blue and white striped shirt and blue tie with glasses, sat watching the footage up until the moments before the crash before looking down at the ground and appearing to take notes.

The court heard Hill was thrown clean from the cockpit, his helmet had come off, he was badly injured and in 'danger of dying'.

He was placed in an induced coma before being discharged from hospital three weeks later, and appears to have made a full physical recovery, Mr Kark told the court.

Hill told emergency services he had been feeling ill before the crash, and when questioned by police said he had no memory of the incident.     

Hill, was a British Airways captain at the time his Hawker Hunter jet crashed onto the A27.

The Old Bailey heard that to perform the stunt, called a bent loop, the plane needed to reach a certain height. 

Prosecutor Thomas Kark QC said that 'pilot error' was to blame as it was said.

But it was said Mr Hill extended the flaps of the jet indicating a 'deliberate and conscious' action that shows he realised he was lower than he should have been.

'On Saturday, August 22, 2015 air show took place at Shoreham on the south coast of England. Shoreham sits just to the west of Brighton and to the east of Worthing,' he said.

'It was a beautiful sunny Saturday, and a large number of aircraft were to take part in the show including a Hawker Hunter jet, which first flew in 1955 and which was piloted by Mr Andrew 'Andy' Hill.

'Mr Hill was part way through his display when his aircraft crashed onto the A27 road, which runs from east to west and lies just north of the airfield, the aircraft disintegrated and the crash caused a massive fireball.

'The effects of that crash were devastating, and 11 people lost their lives as a result. Mr Hill miraculously escaped, because his cockpit separated from the rest of the aircraft ending in a ditch, his seat was left lying on the ground.'

The court heard until the moment of the crash, there was 'nothing wrong' with the flying capabilities of the aircraft.

Mr Hill (pictured arriving at the Old Bailey on Wednesday) denies manslaughter 

Mr Kark said: 'It was in excellent working condition. The crash happened purely by pilot error.

'The pilot was attempting a manoeuvre called a bent loop which requires the aircraft to reach a specific height before it begins its downward trajectory.

'Mr Hill did not reach the height required, but nevertheless continued the manoeuvre.

'In short, he did not have the height to pull the aircraft out of its dive, back to level flight at a safe height and, as a result he crashed to the ground.'

Mr Hill, who served in the Royal Air Force between 1985 and 1994, also faces one charge of endangering an aircraft.

When the disaster happened at the popular air show, he was a captain with British Airways.

Mr Kark also told jurors that Mr Hill had been feeling 'unwell' before he tried the stunt.

'As he was being treated Mr Hill was asked if he had been feeling unwell before the crash and he replied 'yes',' he said.

 Prosecution experts could find 'no proper foundation' for the illness and if he had been feeling unwell, to continue such a display was 'negligent in the extreme', Mr Kark said. 

'Dr Karen Eastman also states that she asked Mr Hill if he could remember what happened and he said 'no'.'

Mr Kark also said that Mr Hill had performed a dangerous manoeuvre at a show in the year before the crash.

'Although you will hear him described as a careful and competent display pilot, there have also been times when he has taken risks or flown in a way one would not expect a careful and competent fast jet display pilot to do,' he said. 

A year before the crash, at Southport air show, Hill 'performed a dangerous manoeuvre and his display was then halted' by a 'stop, stop, stop' call, Mr Kark said.

He added: 'Such a call is a rare event and was issued on that occasion because the manoeuvre in fact that he performed took him far too close to the crowd and was dangerous.

'Unfortunately, on this occasion in 2015 at Shoreham, no one had time to call out a 'stop' and his display ended in tragedy.' 

The jet 1955 Hawker Hunter, pictured here seconds before impact, was destroyed in the crash

He had spent a total of 20.25 hours airborne in the Hawker Hunter jet before the crash. He denies gross negligence manslaughter, which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. 

 It is understood his defence is that his flying was affected by the G-force and he may have been affected by a 'cognitive impairment', Mr Kark said.

He added the G-force experienced was 'nothing unusual' for the ex-military pilot, and the aircraft was fitted with a system to counteract it.

Jurors were selected from a panel of 56 people who first were questioned over their knowledge of the event, the area, emergency services who attended the crash and potential witnesses in the case.

The Shoreham Airshow has not been staged again since the disaster in 2015, out of respect for the families of the men who died. 

The 11 who died are named in the charges as wedding chauffeur Maurice Abrahams, 76, from Brighton; retired engineer James Mallinson, 72, from Newick, near Lewes; window cleaner and builder Mark Trussler, 54, from Worthing; cycling friends Dylan Archer, 42, from Brighton, and Richard Smith, 26, from Hove.

The others were NHS manager Tony Brightwell, 53, from Hove; grandfather Mark Reeves, 53, from Seaford; Worthing United footballers Matthew Grimstone and Jacob Schilt, both 23; personal trainer Matt Jones, 24; and Daniele Polito, 23, from Worthing. 

The trial continues and is being heard before senior judge Mr Justice Edis QC and could last eight weeks. 

A memorial board near Shoreham Airport. The event has not been staged since the disaster in 2015 

Who were the 11 victims of the 2015 Shoreham air disaster?

Former police officer Maurice Abrahams was a chauffeur who was killed while on his way to a job

Maurice Abrahams, 76:

Chauffeur Mr Abrahams, from Brighton, was en route in his classic Daimler to collect bride Rebecca Sheen and take her to her wedding when the plane crashed.

A former police officer with Hampshire Constabulary, he was an ex-member of the Grenadier Guards and Parachute Regiment, and had served in Cyprus and Bahrain with the UN.

In his later years, he enjoyed working for East Sussex-based Chariots Chauffeurs as well as gardening.

His funeral was held at St Margaret's Church in Rottingdean, where he had driven brides to their weddings countless times.

Married to Edwina, Mr Abrahams had a son, Eddie, and daughter Lizzie.

Graham Mallinson, pictured, went to Shoreham to photograph the RAF Vulcan

James Graham Mallinson, known as Graham, 72:

Retired engineer Mr Mallinson, from Newick, near Lewes, had gone to Shoreham to photograph one of the last Vulcan bomber flights.

Relatives said he was kind and generous with a 'great sense of humour'. 

He was a private and loving family man, they added.

A lifetime member of the Bluebell Railway in East Sussex, married father Mr Mallinson had recently developed an interest in photographing vintage aircraft.

Mark Trussler wanted to take photographs of the RAF Vulcan bomber due to fly over Shoreham on the day of the crash

Mark Trussler, 54:

Father-of-six Mr Trussler, a window cleaner from Worthing, had taken his motorbike for a spin on the day of the tragedy as he had also wanted to see the Vulcan flight.

While in Shoreham, he texted his fiancee Giovanna Chirico telling her to get the children ready so they could take them out for lunch on his return home.

She told him she loved him and his last words to her were, 'I love you too, forever'.

 A motorbike and rugby fan, he was also described as a doting father.

 

Dylan Archer, 42, and Richard Smith, 26:

IT consultant Mr Archer, a father of two who lived in Brighton, and Mr Smith, who lived in Hove, were due to meet up with a third friend to head out for a cycle ride in the South Downs.

Mr Archer, who grew up in the Midlands, had a lifelong passion for bikes and cars, and rode the bike he made himself on the day he died.

Dylan Archer and Richard Smith were due to meet up with a third friend to go on a cycle ride when they were killed in the Shoreham tragedy 

After going to university in Birmingham, Buckinghamshire-raised Mr Smith worked in a bicycle shop in Cosham, Portsmouth.

He later moved to Hove where he worked in marketing and web development at ActSmart, a firm that specialises in providing advice to the cycle industry.

Tony Brightwell, 53, rode off on his bicycle to see the airshow

Tony Brightwell, 53:

Health care manager Mr Brightwell, from Hove, was indulging his twin passions of planes and cycling when tragedy struck.

His fiancee Lara watched him cycle off to watch one of the last Vulcan bomber flights, 'but he never came home', she said.

Mr Brightwell gained his private pilot licence at Shoreham, loved food and cooking, and admired Second World War pilots.

 

 

Mark Reeves, 53, stopped and took photographs of the aircraft in the moments before the crash 

Mark Reeves, 53:

Computer-aided design technician Mr Reeves, from Seaford, near Eastbourne, had parked his motorbike to take photographs of planes when the crash happened.

A grandfather, relatives described him as a 'sun worshipper' who would often be seen relaxing with a cocktail in hand on holiday.

His family said he was combining two favourite hobbies of riding his cherished Honda bike to take photographs at the air show.

 

 

Matthew Grimstone and Jacob Schilt, both 23:

The two Worthing United footballers were travelling together in a car to a 3pm home game against Loxwood FC when they were caught up in the crash.

Mr Grimstone's parents Sue and Phil and brothers David and Paul called him the 'kindest person you could ever meet'.

Team-mates said Mr Schilt was a 'tenacious midfielder' with an eye for a goal.

Mr Grimstone had also worked at Brighton & Hove Albion for seven years, most recently as a groundsman at the Lancing training ground.

Matthew Grimstone and Jacob Schilt, both 23, were travelling to Worthing United to play in a home game against Loxwood FC when they were caught up in the crash

Matt Jones, 24, and Daniele Polito, 23:

Father Daniele Polito, from Worthing, was travelling in the same car as personal trainer Matt Jones when tragedy struck.

Mr Polito's mother Leslye Polito said on the first anniversary of the disaster that the previous 12 months had failed to ease her loss. 

A keen DJ, Mr Jones had reportedly recently returned to the UK from living in Australia.

Matt Jones and Daniele Polito both died in the same car  

 

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