This isn't about wingly, cost sharing etc. For sure, there are people who use the cost sharing 'rules' such that Joe Public pays for all direct costs less £0.01; the pilot getting paid in hours for his logbook. Whilst Wingly etc may be entirely legal, one must question the ethics and the original intent of the legislation which presents far too many loopholes.
Those of us who have been kicking around for a while are completely aware of the cash-for-flights sub-culture, especially in the sporting venue/celebrity environment. The fact that this aircraft was an N reg, flown by a pilot whose qualifications are being questioned (no facts yet, just rumour) just adds a bit of spice to the discussion. In the helicopter world, the CAA tends to keep a very close eye on aircraft arriving at events such as Ascot, Cheltenham etc; they have not done so in the less well known and prevalent fixed wing environment.
For clarity, I don't know whether this particular flight was a cash-filled brown envelop transaction but it certainly bears all the hallmarks. The ambulance chasers will be salivating.