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Shoreham air crash: Coroner apologises for delay to inquest

BBC/Sussex Police/Facebook (Top row, left to right) Matt Jones, Matthew Grimstone, Jacob Schilt, Maurice Abrahams, Richard Smith. (Bottom row, left to right) Mark Reeves, Tony Brightwell, Mark Trussler, Daniele Polito, Dylan Archer, Graham MallinsonBBC/Sussex Police/Facebook
(Top row, left to right) Matt Jones, Matthew Grimstone, Jacob Schilt, Maurice Abrahams, Richard Smith. (Bottom row, left to right) Mark Reeves, Tony Brightwell, Mark Trussler, Daniele Polito, Dylan Archer, Graham Mallinson

A coroner has apologised to the families of 11 men who were killed in the Shoreham Airshow tragedy for their seven-year wait for answers.

West Sussex senior coroner Penelope Schofield expressed her "deepest regret" that the ordeal endured by relatives of those who died had been "added to" by delays to the inquest.

The men died when a plane taking part in a display in August 2015 crashed into the A27.

A further 13 people were injured.

The pilot of the Hawker Hunter plane, Andrew Hill, was charged with 11 counts of manslaughter by gross negligence but found not guilty on all counts in March 2019.

He maintains he has no recollection of the crash.

The inquest was originally opened on 2 September 2015 but adjourned in 2018 due to the criminal trial of Mr Hill.

The inquest resumed in March 2019 after the trial, but hearings set for September 2020 were adjourned due to the pandemic.

'Far longer wait'

At a pre-inquest review on 1 September Ms Schofield said the inquest "would not reinvestigate the crash", as this evidence had been provided by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch.

Opening the full inquest in Horsham on Wednesday, Ms Schofield said: "You have all tolerated a far longer wait for these inquest hearings to commence than I would ever have wished for. I am so sorry you have waited so long."

The 11 victims were:

  • Anthony Brightwell, 53, from Hove
  • Daniele Polito, 23, from Goring-by-Sea
  • Dylan Archer, 42, from Brighton
  • Jacob Schilt, 23, from Brighton
  • James Mallinson, 72, from Newick
  • Mark Reeves, 53, from Seaford
  • Mark Trussler, 54, from Worthing
  • Matthew Grimstone, 23, from Brighton
  • Matthew Jones, 24, from Littlehampton
  • Maurice Abrahams, 76, from Brighton
  • Richard Smith, 26, from Hove

The coroner also apologised to families that the inquest would be unable to reconsider "many matters that remain a concern to them," after the High Court denied an application to include some of the evidence from the criminal trial of Mr Hill, including a cockpit video of the crash.

Mr Hill will not be called as a witness, having submitted evidence to the investigation.

His request at the pre-inquest review for Ms Schofield to rule out a verdict of unlawful killing was denied.

The inquest is scheduled to conclude on 20 December.

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