From the AAIB report
Quote
The first recorded flight was a local flight from Compton
Abbas with a duration of 31 minutes. (Figure 1 depicts
the ground track and altitude trace). Indicated on the
altitude trace are significant points in the flight in terms
of minimum altitude, descent rates and manoeuvres, as
well as the height of the ground below the aircraft. Of
note was the minimum altitude of 850 ft agl close to the
town of Blandford Forum, some tight level turns, and
a loop at about 1,200 ft agl followed by a descending
turn to the right at 2,330 ft/min, from 1,000 ft agl down
to a height of 410 ft agl, near Witchampton. This loop
was performed on a north-westerly heading, into the
prevailing wind, and was started within 20 m of the
position of the subsequent accident site. Further on,
near Chettle House, there was a second loop at about
1,600 ft agl, followed by an immediate right descending
turn of 300 ft at 2,350 ft/min. The maximum recorded
altitude during the flight was 2,150 ft amsl.
Unquote.
For me this speaks volumes about the pilots decision making and his attitude. He was IMO wholly unqualified to fly the flight profile described above. He got away with it the first time but clearly not the second time. He may have won the court case but that does not change the general level of reckless and poor judgement displayed by this pilot.
He will spend the the rest of his life knowing he killed his friend, so I guess justice will have been served, but it is so sad that this tragic accident was so completely preventable by simply following the aerobatic minimum altiude rules.
BTW there are about 100 active airshow pilots in North America who fly low level aerobatic routines. These pilots hold display authorizations that are only given after a rigorous assessment process. They are all most all professional pilots and fly aircraft with high performance margins......yet two or three kill themselves flying low level aerobatics every year.
There can be only one lesson from this accident.
1) Do not fly low level aerobatics unless you are a professional aerobatic pilot and fully understand the risks and can mitigate them.
2) NEVER EVER fly a low level aerobatic maneuver with a passenger onboard.