Modified microlight caused crash

Terry Stewart and Daniel Attubato were killed in the crash

Two men were killed when a microlight that had been modified incorrectly experienced a catastrophic loss of control and crashed, an inquest heard.

Pilot Terry Stewart, 50, of Orpington, and Daniel Attubato, 35, of Maidstone, were killed when the craft came down on the Isle of Sheppey in August 2004.

Mr Attubato and his wife Yvonne had received flights as a gift.

A jury delivered a narrative verdict saying incorrect modifications on the craft caused it to crash into cliffs.

An Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) report into the crash published in November 2005 looked at the way four rivets had been fixed to the plane.

He was a great husband and all his friends and family miss him more than anything Yvonne Attubato

The inquest was told all Pegasus Quik microlights had been subject to a mandatory modification concerning the left and right uprights by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in May 2004 which was carried out by Mr Stewart and his friend John Whelan, an inspector from the British Microlight Aircraft Association (BMAA).

A jury delivering a narrative verdict at the end of the nine-day inquest which said: "The microlight while flying north west along the northern coast of Sheppey at a height which did not require the pilot to drastically alter altitude to clear the cliffs, experienced a loss of control.

"This was due to a structural failure of the top fitting of the right hand upright, having been modified incorrectly according to service bulletin 116.

"This failure led to the sudden tightening of the trim cable, causing the control bar to be forced forward violently, a sharp pitch up and an irrecoverable tremble."

Mid-Kent and Medway coroner Roger Sykes said he wanted to express his "deepest condolences in respect to the tragic circumstances in which these lives were lost".

In a statement read out at the inquest, Mr Attubato's widow said they had been given flying vouchers as a Christmas present by her parents and decided to use them on 21 August to help celebrate her birthday.

She was paired with a full-time flying instructor and her husband with assistant flying instructor Mr Stewart, who only worked weekends.

Following the inquest Mrs Attubato said: "He was a great husband and all his friends and family miss him more than anything."

John Whelan, 62, of Romford, east London, was charged with their deaths and contravening aircraft regulations in 2006 but after a hearing in 2008, the Attorney General ruled the aircraft inspector was unfit to stand trial.