Oh dear....this is where the P of Pprune departs the scene! Too many getting too frustrated by other posts. Really, is this how we want this thread to develop. It will turn several away from Pprune and turn it into a joke.
Everyone means well - let them have their say and if you get angry with that post, bite the bullet and ignore it - simples
I offer up the "penultimate" picture presented by NORTHLIGHT
Post 614 as my sole evidence that this cab hit the deck with absolutley NO fwd or sideways drift. Thus I would suggest it fell near vertically (with or without tumbling). Thus it commenced from a near zero fwd speed scenario.
There are NO witness marks depicted - showing fwd/sideways/aft movement of the main body of the aircraft across that roof. It also tells me that the a/c hit with enormous downward force - symptomatic of freefall from some considerable height without any form of arrestive action.
BBC News - In pictures: Helicopter wreckage lifted from Glasgow bar.
I for one, believe the two eye witnesses who said the a/c was quiet and the rotors were stopped.
The gearbox is still in the a/c. This tells me the rotors wound down and didn't stop suddenly. This tells me they wound down quickly. It tells me close to maximum pitch was applied to the rotors to cause this to happen. How the max pitch was applied is left to the AAIB to decide.
Should have the initial by this time next week, with luck.
I learned this morning that their ELT triggered and was picked up by the ARCC. Even though it is irrelevant in these particular circumstances - It did its job.