Shirley couple ‘unlawfully killed’ in aerobatics crash

Nov 25 2009 By Michael Posner

AN UNLICENSED pilot unlawfully killed a Birmingham husband and wife when his Piper Cherokee plane nose-dived into the ground at 173mph, an inquest jury decided.

The pilot, Alan Matthews, died alongside recently wed couple Nicholas and Emma O’Brien, from Shirley, when he attempted an aerobatic manoeuvre while flying them on a pleasure trip.

The plan crashed into a gantry on the West Coast Main Line at Colwich Junction near Rugeley, in January.

The inquest jury at Stafford returned a verdict that Mr Matthews, aged 59, of Coppice Road, Walsall Wood, died accidentally.

He was killed instantly from multiple injuries along with Mr O’Brien, aged 35 and his 29-year-old wife, of Watford Road, Shirley. Mr O’Brien, a friend of Mr Matthews, had treated his wife to the flight as a Christmas present. But they were only eight minutes into the trip from Stittles Airfield, near Lichfield, when things began to go wrong.

Mrs Georgina Dean, a senior inspector with the Department of Transport’s Air Accident Investigation Branch, said Mr Matthews’ certificate to fly expired in 2001.

“There was a loss of control while he was attempting an aerobatic manoeuvre,” she said. “Some people who knew him said he liked to give people a thrill and throw them about a bit. The speed the plane was travelling showed a loss of control. He was not fit to perform manoeuvres.”

Mrs O’Brien had a ten-year-old son, Callum, from a previous relationship and an 18-month-old son with her husband. They had married in August last year.