Police name pair killed in North Yorkshire helicopter crash

Police have named two people they believe were killed when a helicopter crashed in North Yorkshire.

Pilot Ian Macdonald, 66, and Admarsu Birhan, 16, died on Monday near Burton in Lonsdale, said North Yorkshire Police.

The force said, however, that formal identification had not yet taken place, as investigations continue.

The village has sent its condolences to both families.

Councillor Peter Thompson, chairman of Burton in Lonsdale Parish Council, confirmed Mr Macdonald was a resident while Admarsu - a German national - had been living locally as part of a farming exchange programme.

"Ian was a big contributor to the village's community shop," he said. "He provided time for the management of it."

Craven district councillor Stuart Handley, who lives in Burton in Lonsdale, said although Mr Macdonald had not lived in the village long, he had quickly endeared himself to the locals.

"He made himself very well-known within the community," said Mr Handley. "He was a very well-liked person within the village."

Mr Handley said Mr Macdonald was often seen in its shop and pub.

Emergency services said they were called to the crash scene on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales just before midday on Monday.

One local farmer, who did not want to be named, reported seeing "a large plume of thick black smoke".

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