Air accident investigators will be examining if the weather played any part in the microlight crash which claimed the lives of two members of Perth’s Scottish Aero Club at the weekend.
Dave Martin (63), of Kinghorn, and Alan McCaskie (62), of Broughty Ferry, died on Saturday after their craft crashed into Ben More, near Crianlarich, just after midday.
Walkers on the 3,825ft Munro have spoken of the conditions they met as they made their way to the snow-topped summit.
Software engineer Alistair MacLeod (26) from Edinburgh was climbing with a friend when he came upon the aftermath of the accident.
It was around 4pm when he reached the peak of Ben More from the north-east ridge.
”It was misty and we were not really aware of anything at first,” said Mr MacLeod, who captured a series of photographs from the crash scene.
”I heard a helicopter buzzing around as we approached the summit. Shortly afterwards the mist cleared and I saw the RN Sea King circling to the east of Ben More.”
He added: ”A couple of hundred metres down it had started to clear and mountain rescue people we spoke to said there had been a microlight crash with two fatalities.
”We then walked down towards the site. There was one microlight and two bodies, which by that time were in body bags.”‘Gusty, strong winds’He added: ”The site was very near the top of the hill. Perhaps if it was misty when they crashed they did not see the hill?
”On the way up we had sleet, sharp hail, strong winds and with the mist the visibility was down to 20 metres.
”I do not know if it was misty when they crashed but as we walked there were gusty, strong winds which were suddenly calm. That might have affected things.”
The UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) confirmed yesterday that it had deployed one of its five teams of investigators based at Farnborough Airport.
”We are investigating the incident,” said a spokeswoman for the AAIB, part of the Department for Transport which determines the causes of air accidents and serious incidents and makes safety recommendations intended to prevent a recurrence.
She added that no timescale could be given as to when the report would be available as each investigation was different.
Pilot Mr Martin and his passenger Mr McCaskie had been travelling to the Isle of Mull with three other aircraft when the accident happened. Their friends, who had been flying in front and were unaware of the tragedy, arrived at Mull safely and only heard what had happened later.
Chairman of the Scottish Aero Club Dave McElroy stressed that Mr Martin, a retired health and safety consultant, was an ”extremely proficient and experienced” microlight pilot.
While Mr McElroy said that the club was cooperating with the investigation, it would not be preventing members from flying.
Photo by Maurice McDonald/PA Archive