Lured in?
I'm a lowly PPL rated on R44 and R66, but try to be conscientious about understanding the main causes of accidents. That's why I've done the RHC safety course, and diligently read the AAIB reports.
By far the biggest killer in R44s is DVE, and reading some of the reports the deterioration in conditions is almost insidious, as pilots start at good altitude and gradually get pushed down until there's nowhere to go. This is irresponsible, illegal, unforgivable, call it what you want.
There was no insidious build-up of IMC conditions here. He shouldn't have gone, full stop. Totally murderous - there is no excuse for this type of behaviour, and looking at his intended LZ, an R44 in a hot (and high?) climate, 4 up, it hardly appeared a suitable place to land even in good VMC to me. No escape route in any direction, massive HV cables, trees, buildings, very steep descent required. It makes me so angry that he took 3 other lives with him. A disgrace.
This video should be watched by all heli pilots on a regular basis whenever the chance of complacency sets in. I'm stunned that even in full view of this evidence, there is a group of individuals on here (not the pros it seems), who still feel that tackling ILLEGAL flight in IMC is not too frightening.
I had to abandon a flight last week due to unforecasted low cloud, but as I sat in my 120 quid taxi for the completion of my journey, remembered the old adage "Better to be on the ground wishing you were flying, than the other way round'.
I really hope this accident is worthwhile in reminding us ALL that pushing on into IMC (either without the rating, the certified machine or the MSA) is just not an option. No matter what tech you've got in the panel...
FF