- Pilot Chris Wilson, 39, died in Congo in 2010 after plane fell from the sky
- Inquest heard crash may have been caused by escaped crocodile in cabin
- Two or three foot animal could have been hidden in passenger's luggage
- Coroner told people regularly took animals such as chickens on flights
- Other options could include sabotage by another company or fuel shortage
By Chris Pleasance
Updated: 13:10 EST, 11 July 2014
British pilot Chris Wilson, 39, died with 19 others when the plane he was controlling plummeted from the sky
A plane crash which killed a British pilot in Africa may have been caused by passengers panicking over an escaped crocodile, an inquest heard yesterday.
Chris Wilson, 39, died alongside 18 others when the jet he was co-piloting plunged to the ground during a routine flight across the Congo.
First Officer Wilson died instantly, alongside fellow pilot Danny Philemotte, and no cause for the crash has ever been established.
But today an inquest into his death heard a stampede may have broken out over an escaped crocodile in the cabin, which saw passengers surge forward, causing the plane to nose-dive.
The only surviving passenger claimed the reptile spooked a cabin crew member, who ran towards the cockpit causing the passengers to follow.
Assistant Coroner David Dooley read out an email from Chris’s dad Rob to Congonese officials.
'Rob Wilson said he had spoken to the original investigator on site who said that there was a gentleman who came up with a story about a crocodile,' he wrote.
'There is apparently a video of the crocodile being taken out of the plane.
'They think it may have frightened the cabin crew member and she ran forward, with the other passengers following.
'The weight shift caused by the panic may have affected the plan causing it to nose dive or stall.'
He added: 'It would have been a maximum of two or three feet in length.
'We don’t know if one was being carried for certain, although it was apparently quite normal for animals and chickens to be carried on the plane, it was used like a taxi in this regard.'
The inquest, at Gloucester Coroner’s Court, heard that Chris had moved to the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2010 after giving up his job as a cabin crew member with a British airline to follow his dreams of becoming a commercial pilot.
He began to fly for local company Filair to carry out the required 1,000 hours of flying needed to get a licence.
Chris had already completed one stint with the company, and on June 24 went back for another three month attachment.
Today an inquest into Wilson's death heard that the crash may have been caused by passengers stampeding to the front of the plane after a crocodile escaped from a passenger's holdall
Gloucester Coroner's Court heard that Wilson was flying with African airline Filair to train for his licence, but had told family members he didn't want to work there because it was dangerous
But he became more and more concerned about the state of the airline and the flying ability of Mr Philemotte, who also owned the company.
In a statement read to the court, Chris’s brother Martin said: 'Every time he flew with Mr Philemotte there was always one incident or another.
'He said he didn’t want to fly with him anymore. He said if it wasn’t for the fact they could see where they were going they wouldn’t ever get anywhere because Philemotte couldn’t read the instruments.
'He said he didn’t know how Philemotte was still alive his flying was so bad.'
Chris also told his brother how passengers would walk around, making the plane unstable, and would stand up when they were supposed to have their seat belts on.
It was also commonplace for passengers to take animals on planes, the inquest heard, and local media reports at the time claimed the crocodile had escaped from a passenger’s holdall.
'He didn’t really want to go back there but he wanted to get his flying hours in,' Martin added.
The inquest heard Chris had been flying from the capital, Kinshasa, to Bandundu airport on August 25, 2010, when the tragedy happened.
The small plane, which was full to capacity with passengers, was beginning its descent to land when it suddenly 'fell out the sky like a leaf'.
A number of different explanations had been put forward for the sudden crash, but none had been proven, the inquest was told.
The inquest heard that animals were commonplace on flights as people often took chickens on board to take them to market. The crocodile was thought to be between two and three foot and was stored in a holdall
Wilson who was piloting a Let 410 turbo prop (pictured) at the time of the crash, said co-pilot and airline owner Danny Philemotte was so bad at flying he he was surprised he hadn't killed himself already
Mr Dooley said evidence had been put forward about a fuel shortage, the over-loading of the plane, pilot error, an engine failure, maintenance issues and a mass surge of passengers to the front of the plane.
Timothy Atkinson, an air accident investigator, said he had reviewed the evidence given to him by Congolese authorities but was unable to draw any definitive conclusions because they had not handed over the black box.
He said: 'To date we have no information from the black box reader, it has been almost four years since the accident.
'The aircraft struck a mud and brick building with a straw roof, and it came to a rest against another one on the ground.
'The most likely explanation I can find is that the aircraft stalled, or was in a spin prior to impact.
'There is no evidence suggesting an engine failure, or a nose dive, although I cannot be sure without looking at the plane.
'It would reinforce the idea that the accident appears to have the hallmarks of a stall and spin, which may have been from a variety of causes. Essentially, it fell out of the sky.'
The court heard sabotage of the plane may also have been a possibility as rival companies fiercely competed for business.
Mr Dooley said there was not enough evidence to conclude any one of the factors had caused the crash, and said contradicting evidence had been presented.
Recording an open conclusion, he said: 'Problems with direct witnesses and problems with the black box have only resulted in vague guesses as to what happened with this crash.
'All we have are possibilities rather than probabilities. I don’t believe any further efforts could have been made to obtain any more information.'
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