derry

It seems the agent Willie McKay has issued a statement stating categorically that he didn't own or have any connection with any company that owned the aircraft. Sky saying he hired it just like a taxi and has no idea about legal requirements. So he's successfully, maybe, washed his hands of that. With aviation regulations pretty explicit not leaving any wiggle room there are interesting times ahead. A private pilot flying a single engine aircraft alone at night in icing conditions on a long over sea leg with a plane hired by a third party as a commercial flight is about as dangerous as it could get, unless there are maintenance, regulatory issues with the aircraft itself. I would think the insurance companies are rubbing their hands in anticipation of the accident report later on in the year.

A serious question deserves a serious answer. I'm pretty sure they play at AFC Totton's ground. They applied to join the Championship last summer but weren't accepted possibly through not having an adult team at the time but then neither did Utd but they were accepted. I think there is a pyramid arrangement and they are in a regional league fairly well down.

She was robbed getting out of a taxi in the early hours. Ryan was looking after his two kids. As reported.

I see that the owners of the aircraft which is registered by Southern Aircraft Consultancy Inc according to the Mail have been removed or withheld from the FAA in what appears to be a concerted attempt to keep their identity secret.

Going down to 10 men after 72 minutes was a blow but I'm not sure the manager noticed because he did the same against Crystal Palace. Last week I defended Stephens because Crouch headed the ball onto his arm but his crass incompetent giving the ball away was ridiculous. The manager must take a great deal of the blame for today. If our tactics against spoiling physical teams parking the bus is forming triangles in our own half and passing the ball sideways only shoves the possession up to 67% we are not going to win many. Stephens was only still following the game plan. When you play four at the back the wing backs become full backs that didn't happen. We bring on a 6' - 4" striker with a good finisher plus Redmond, don't start me on Elyanoussi. Hojbjerg was all energy, no subtlety and atrocious passing, for God's sake shoot man when you get the chance, no, take two more touches and lose the opening. For goodness sake mix it up, maybe sometimes pass it to get numbers up and then play their game, stick the ball in the mixer and like they did fight like hell or get the wingbacks running out wide and get to the bye line with strikers and midfielders attacking the box. Passing for the sake of it, allowing opposition that want to funnel back and defend deep isn't going to cause them trouble. What's wrong with the original plan we were sold. Press the opposition and attack with pace.

Another issue will be the result of an inquest which I think will be adjourned until the final report is published. Then everybody will want to be legally represented. Manufacturers of aircraft, engines and equipment, pilots, operator, owner, and all associated businesses, insurance companies, all employing legal teams to try to pin the blame and some hoping for an unlawful killing verdict to open the floodgates and pin it on the pilot, owner, operator, charterer etc. It will not be about who did what, it will all be about who can sue who for what with the target being the deepest pockets.

I suspect that the insurance company are awaiting an accident report. There has to be at the very least a deep suspicion of a criminal act due to the use of an American registered aircraft/ownership, the qualifications of the pilot, the single pilot and not least the flight undertaken in a single engine aircraft at night plus who paid for the flight and related expenses and how they did that. Nobody has as yet cast any light on the report that the apparently regular pilot of this aircraft (video circa 2015) going through passport control, not going on the flight and maybe not even being there. This whole operation stinks. The agents and both football clubs come out of this badly. Hidden ownership of the aircraft is very suspicious because under US law only US citizens can own a US registered aircraft. I'm just waiting for an insurance company to come out and wash their hands of any claim.

I think even the insurance might be in question if this flight was carried out anyway other than completely legal.

I flew the BAC 1-11 for a couple of years, that had a similar system to push the nose down if the aircraft deep stalled because of the T tail. The test aircraft had a parachute to deploy if that happened. The aircraft got into a position that I think masked the air intakes on the engines. Ignoring the stick shaker or stick pusher is sheer stupidity unless it's a fault in the system. Much like flying a single engine aeroplane at night in icing conditions over a long sea leg.

Interestingly the Captain had a row in the crew room over industrial problems and was supposed to be in a foul mood not good with two relatively inexperienced co-pilots. The same Captain represented Capt Thain for BALPA in his problems with BEA after the Man Utd 1958 Munich crash. The Germans blamed ice on the wings and refused to change the accident report even though it was conclusively proved that it was slush on the runway affecting the relatively new nosewheel aircraft. The drag on the nosewheel increased by the square of the speed. The faster the speed the greater the drag eventually the speed stopped increasing and the plane ploughed off the runway. Unlike Boeings where a single flab lever sequentially when selected raises flaps then the leading edge slats. There are speeds to be attained for each selection. The Trident had two levers for flaps and droops so the droops could be retracted independently which is what happened with the speed too low.

Probably only the agent had a clue which type of aircraft was used by the two individuals. It probably never dawned on Cardiff what a potentially dangerous flight was being planned. As for the Mayday call. As reported, a relatively inexperienced private pilot flying an aircraft he admitted to being rusty on, at night probably in cloud, almost certainly if serviceable on autopilot. A competent instrument rated pilot with current relevant experience on type would have been constantly monitoring the instruments. A pilot without those skills and not experienced on the aircraft in those conditions may have lost control, not even knowing which way was up and what the aircraft was doing, consequently fighting for his life may well had no time due to complete overload to think. One night early in my career I was flying single pilot carrying a load of explosives for the oil rigs from Norwich to Stavanger in the middle of the night. I was looking out of the window on a beautiful black star lit night with no horizon. I then passed over a large fishing fleet below showing single white lights, all of a sudden I couldn't see where the sky was because the lights blended in with the stars. Visually I didn't know what way was up or down. I opted for the simple solution, stopped looking out of the window and went back to instrument cross checking and monitored the instruments until past the fishing fleet.

I don't know whether the a/c had de-icing boots or prop heating. Certainly photos pre accident I've seen showed a black leading edge on the wings and tail plane but that might just have been protective covering. The problem with boots if serviceable is that the ice has to be allowed to build up before operation. If used too early the boots cause a groove at the back of the build up so the pulsing doesn't break the ice free. I've flown the Fokker F27 and Bombardier Q400 which had boots. Breaking ice off was never a problem. The props have heating. Probably before your time BEA Trident PI crashed coming out of Heathrow, stalled due to premature retraction of the droops and went in with little forward speed.

Although they have found the wreckage it will be difficult to prove icing. They will be trying to eliminate initially structural failure or engine failure and if they find the bodies whether the post mortem shows up any health failure. Going to take a while before any report comes out. An inquest will look at it in detail and what the jury's verdict will be. It remains to be seen if there will be any prosecutions. I was part of the BALPA legal team representing the pilots at the Kegworth as a B737 - 400 pilot at the time. (M1 crash British Midland B737). The inquest was painstaking with QCs representing all interested parties and cross examinations going into all the details.

Echo says felt his hamstring could miss Cardiff game.

It was a poor game. Long is a ****ing idiot not going for the corner and going down. When we were ahead in the last minute we have to be ruthless. Throw ins down the line and concentrate on the corners. We play like a team with peanuts for brains. Crouch should have got nowhere near the ball. At least two players, as he was the target should have blocked him off. The penalty was nonsense because Stephens was facing the ball which was over his head, Crouch was behind him and headed the ball back onto his arm. Stephens never even saw the ball. Barnes made no effort to avoid the goalkeeper and took a heavy touch then just ran into McCarthy who was late rather than going after the ball he could easily have jumped over McCarthy.

If it's true it would have to be a charter or a helicopter. I don't think there is a schedule from Birmingham.

I listened to Hasenhuttl on Solent on my way home and he was quite explicit. It was intentional to avoid giving Palace the ball with more direct passes and that not only does he need to educate the team but the supporters to understand what they are doing. I still think allowing opponents the comfort of getting ten behind the ball stops teams from scoring. Man City v Newcastle for example with far superior players. I think we should have been compact at the back but quick to get at their back four which we didn't try and do. Dwelling on the ball just makes the game in front more congested. We just played into their hands. We were lucky to get away with a draw.

I wondered how we would play against Zaha and Townsend. I think we were too frightened of them the way we decided not to play the advertised high tempo, high press, quick passes and runners up front and played right into their hands. It seems the whole emphasis was not to attack and lose the ball. I see Zaha has been charged with improper conduct. Several times after multiple passes amongst the defenders either Stephens or Vestergaard dithered too long and were closed down and lost the ball several times dangerously so. I felt the possession tactic is all very well but all we did was allow the opposition to funnel ten players back and deny our attackers opportunities through sheer numbers, on occasions they won possession and broke dangerously inside our half, I would have thought with the high line they were taking when we had the ball from the keeper it was far less dangerous to play over the back four quickly. Personally reverting to the safety first tactics caused us pressure in the box and could have led to more than the one goal we conceded. We had eight corners against us, a clearance off the line and were pressured on numerous occasions. I think we got it wrong and it was frustrating to watch the slow go nowhere sideways and backwards passing between the centre backs, reminiscent of Puel's and Pellegrino's obsession. When Valery gets into the final third he has to stop turning back and across the field and attack the last defender outside and try and get to the bye line.

Promes for one that wasn't available but we spent the whole of January 18 allegedly after him. We've spent an awful lot of money on other teams mistakes such as Carillo and Hoedt. Vestergaard doesn't look that special. It's easy to buy that sort of player. The fact we are loaning out so many costly recently bought players shows how poor we have been.

Is this just another bid for a player that is not for sale. The management then claim they were trying to do something. I know it's cynical but how many times have we seen it in previous windows slam shut with no decent incomings.

That looks like a pretty damning report. The McKays obviously hired the plane and crew (Did they own it?) They are mixed up in their terms. A commercial flight is confused as private and commercial. The proper terminology is scheduled and chartered. Although the passenger didn't, pay somebody did. A single engine aircraft couldn't be chartered to do that flight legally. It had to be a twin crewed by two commercial pilots. If the plane was a private flight the McKays couldn't be charged or it was commercial and illegal. I think the AAIB and NTSB have homed in on this aspect and there is no place to hide. I have no doubt the truth will come out. What's the odds on a tabloid paying megabucks for the missing pilot's story.

Yes, like a helicopter at front and a pusher engine. They thought Gerry had turned too steeply, had some fuel cock issues, lost height to about 150 ft and steepened the turn to 90 degrees and went in. There was suspicion that the other policeman who had hardly flown (photographer) panicked and grabbed the stick to avoid toppling over and caused the final spiral. Apparently the bubble cockpit was difficult to cope with.

Early in the eighties I had some arguments with members of the Hampshire Constabulary over aviation. Their social club subsidised flying training on a Fuji owned by Condor Engineering in Winchester at Thruxton. As I was an airline pilot with an instructor's rating I was one of those asked to instruct as we didn't have to be associated with a flying club as PPL instructors had to be. It eventually became apparent where this was going. HC were going to set up a flying unit run by a officer with a PPL/Inst Rtg who wasn't involved in the instruction. Eventually some of the officers got PPLs. An aircraft was rented hourly from Southampton School of Flying and used for police work flown by the PPLs most very inexperienced. I argued against this practice and tried to persuade that it had to be professional trained pilots as they had exemptions from low flying rules. I warned that there would be an accident but was ignored. The unit progressed and leased an Optica flown by the same people. On 15th May 1985 (yes another accident) Gerry Spencer who I had taught to fly was flying the Optica with a photographer another policeman. I was flying a Herald off R/w 21 at Southampton (now 20) climbing towards FAW beacon and was told by ATC of an Optica transiting E to W. Gerry recognised my voice and we exchanged brief greetings. When I finished in Guernsey I went to the hotel and checked the teletext news, there it was Police Optica crashes at Ringwood two fatalities. That pretty much finished the policemen working as pilots. They then bought a BN Islander and some CPLs were used, Eventually common sense prevailed and the Hampshire Police helicopter was purchased professionally operated. A couple of good men had to die to prove what we all knew. Only properly trained pilots should be used in whatever role they are required to work. The keen amateur no matter how enthusiastic just cannot cope with the demands that sometimes crop up if not trained.

If we bring in a new wing back on the right like Maehle who has a good assist record with Bertrand on the other side we might be grateful for him if the service in the goal area improves. Only Ings of the rest have a decent goal scoring record all the others score sporadically or rarely.

Cardiff to Guernsey on Saturday it's reported then presumably positioned to Nantes at some point. The safest way to operate VFR is to work the available radar stations civil and military close to track and any airfields that impinge. London Information purely pass information.