Poor visibility lead to fatal helicopter crash, official investigation concludes

A FATAL helicopter accident which resulted in the death of two Galway businessmen last year was probably caused by the pilot becoming disoriented due to poor visibility, an official investigation has concluded.

A report by the Department of Transport’s Air Accident Investigation Unit shows that the helicopter was flying well below the required altitude of 500ft in poor visibility at the time of the crash.

The accident occurred when the Robinson R44 Raven helicopter crashed in woodland in the Slieve Aughty mountains close to a windfarm site at Derrybrien, Co Galway, on July 9, 2005.