Shoreham air crash: Investigators ‘will reveal next week’ what caused the disaster

Emergency services at the scene assisting with the recovery operation after Saturday's crash
PA

The first indications of what caused the Shoreham Air Show disaster could be made public within days, the Standard has learned.

Experts from the Air Accident Investigation Branch are preparing an initial report into the crash and could publish it as early as next week. It is expected to confirm that pilot Andy Hill, 51, who is fighting for life in a medically-induced coma, did not eject from the Hawker Hunter jet before it ploughed into a line of traffic in a fireball.

The AAIB report will also examine whether any SOS calls were made by the pilot.

A spokesman for the AAIB said it was “possible” its report would be ready next week. He added: “That timeframe is possible. It has been accurate in previous cases.”

It was feared up to 20 people could have been killed in Saturday’s crash, as forensic officers continue to search the scene for clues to help identify victims.

Fireball: The explosion after the jet crashed at the Shoreham Air Show
Paul Jarrett/EPA

But police now believe that the likely death toll is 11 as no further evidence of bodies was found when they removed the plane’s wreckage from the A27 yesterday.

West Sussex coroner Penny Schofield has warned that identifying the victims will be a “slow operation”, while more than 200 people have reported friends and relatives as missing since the disaster.

Thousands of onlookers watched in horror as the jet, flown by “un- believably experienced” pilot Mr Hill, failed to pull out of a loop-the-loop stunt and plummeted into the busy A27 bypass, hitting at least four cars.

He was pulled alive from the wreckage. It is thought he may have passed out during the stunt — described by one former RAF aerobatics instructor as a “lunatic manoeuvre” — before regaining consciousness and trying in vain to pull up the aircraft.

So far four people have been named officially as among the dead, including Worthing United footballers Matthew Grimstone and Jacob Schilt, both 23, who were on their way to play a game, and personal trainer Matt Jones, 24.

Motorcyclist Mark Trussler, from Worthing, is missing feared dead, while Daniele Polito, a father from Worthing who was travelling in the same car as Mr Jones, is also believed to have been killed.

Mr Trussler’s long-term partner Giovanna Chirico said today online: “Feeling so empty and lost without my sidekick, best friend and lover Mark Trussler, just wish u were here with me ...my heart aches for u love u my darling fiancee xxxxxx.”

Chauffeur Maurice Abrahams, 76, who was on his way to collect a bride for her wedding in a vintage Daimler, was also killed.

In a tribute note left at the scene, he was hailed “a hero” by one family for apparently letting them overtake him, putting them out of harm seconds before the plane crashed.

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