Oil boss' death was 'pilot error'

The helicopter came down in darkness in heavy rain

A helicopter crash which killed the boss of a Russian oil firm was an accident caused by pilot error, an investigation has concluded.

Stephen Curtis, 45, was killed in March 2004 together with pilot Matthew Radford when the aircraft crashed on arrival at Bournemouth Airport.

The accident - which happened at night and in poor weather - was caused by the pilot's inexperience, the report found.

The Air Accident Investigations Branch said there was no foul play involved.

Mr Curtis, from Portland, is survived by his wife and daughter.

There was no evidence from the wreckage recovered of any mechanical failure or unauthorised interference with the aircraft AAIB report

Mr Curtis worked as a solicitor and was managing director of Group Menatep, a $30bn holding company with interests in the Russian oil industry - including the largest firm, Yukos.

He was appointed shortly after the controversial jailing of Yukos chairman Mikhail Khodorkovsky - which many Russians believed was politically motivated.

Mr Curtis told friends before he died he was worried about business rivals with links to the Kremlin, and feared for his life.

The Air Accident Investigations Branch report stated: "During the final stages of the approach the pilot probably became disorientated due to a loss of visual references when attempting to fly by sole reference to his flight instruments or limited ground lights or a combination of both.

"The pilot had probably become disorientated, and his limited instrument flying background did not equip him to cope with degraded visual environment.

"There was no evidence from the wreckage recovered of any mechanical failure or unauthorised interference with the aircraft or its systems that may have contributed to the accident."