SilsoeSid
I think you have the right approach here - raising a wide number of possibilities like the possibility of pressing engagements to consider as
factors rather than being an armchair investigator. Another one to consider would be why had he departed to the East towards Seatoller, rather than northwest towards home?
The other quote from that article you provided the link to
He said: “I have had the national park and National Trust against me, trying to get me to stop operations, but I had to ignore them because I knew what I was doing was right.”
That could be a big factor if it translated into a disregard for flight safety, a disregard for the operational envelope of the Gazelle as a helicopter type, etc.