The partner of Clutha crash helicopter pilot David Traill has insisted no one could have safely landed the aircraft.
Ten people were killed and 31 injured when the police helicopter crashed through the roof of the Clutha Vaults bar in Glasgow in November 2013.
In a statement to the fatal accident inquiry into the tragedy, Lucy Thomas, who was engaged to Traill, said she believed a faulty instrument led him to think there was enough fuel in the aircraft.
The statement added: “It was acknowledged by the test pilot for the manufacturer that, where there is fuel starvation in both engines at the height at which [the helicopter] was and without an open area in front of it, the aircraft was doomed.
“In reality, it is highly improbable that any pilot could have successfully landed [the helicopter] at night, in an urban environment, from a height of approximately 500-600 feet within a time frame of less than 10 seconds.”
The inquiry into the crash, which the Air Accidents Investigation Branch found was caused by pilot error, closed this month and final written submissions from all the parties involved have now been published.
The Crown has asked Sheriff Principal Craig Turnbull to adopt the report’s findings in full.
Traill, 51, died along with police officers Tony Collins, 43, and Kirsty Nelis, 36, in the helicopter.
Pub customers Gary Arthur, 48, Joe Cusker, 59, Colin Gibson, 33, Robert Jenkins, 61, John McGarrigle, 57, Samuel McGhee, 56 and Mark O’Prey, 44, also died.
