Helicopter substitute to cost £3m

Funds for the machine have been approved by the police authority after it was decided that a need for the craft had been "clearly identified".

" A force helicopter is a very important means of policing the area, providing support to officers on the ground and members of the public "
Dai Davies Dyfed-Powys Police

It will replace a £2.5m helicopter, which was damaged on Christmas Day when the aircraft attempted an emergency landing in Carmarthenshire.

Two people were injured in the accident at Gorslas near Cross Hands - the second incident involving a police helicopter in Wales in two years.

Dai Davies from Dyfed-Powys Police said: "The acquisition of the helicopter is possibly months away yet .

"The availability of suitable machines will have to be researched.

"A force helicopter is a very important means of policing the area providing support to officers on the ground and members of the public."

The investigators of the helicopter crash concluded that human error was the most likely cause.

A spokesman for Sloane Aircraft in Northamptonshire - where tests on the craft were conducted - said mechanical failure had been ruled out.

The eight-seat Augusta 109 Power came down near a dual carriageway at Cross Hands, injuring two of its crew.

Initially, it was thought the aircraft had developed mechanical problems as the crew returned to the force's headquarters in Carmarthen.

It had been taking a patient to Morriston Hospital in Swansea, and was on its way back to the base when it was forced to land near a scrap yard.

The civilian pilot and one of the two police officers on board were released after treatment at the West Wales General Hospital at Carmarthen.

The second officer was unharmed.

The accident follows an incident in April 2000 when the South Wales Police helicopter crashed into the roof of a Cardiff house while pursuing a stolen car.

A report by the Air Accident Investigation Branch revealed that a badly fitted part caused that mechanical failure.