The Safety Alt for next leg to Corran was in excess of 6000ft! It was to this alt the ac would have had to have climbed
before the WP, as that's what I was taught if exiting LL to ML and, anyway, it is good airmanship. Climbing to 2400ft as suggested by D and W would have had my instructors having an apoplectic fit!
Caz - good to hear you but at the FAI, with more in-depth questioning and clarification, Mr Holbrook confirmed the viz was actually better than he had intially said. In deciding which assessment was more accurate, The Sheriff said
I think that the evidence which he gave to this
Inquiry be preferred to the statement which he gave to the Board
Anyway, below 140kts KIAS, COCIOS defines VMC for helos IIRC. Nonetheless, it is possible that the crew went IMC inadvertently but we just don't know!
This of course, is your usual red-herring as the ac was not fit for the flight - defined and demonstrable against the airworthiness regs - perhaps the negligence actually occurred in Oct / Nov 1993?