Plane crash deaths were ‘accidental’

Pilot Michael Roberts, 63, co-pilot Michael Chapman, 57, and passengers David Leslie, 54, Richard Lloyd, 63, and Christopher Allarton, 25, died after the Cessna Citation 500 plane suffered a mechanical fault.

The crew on board the twin-engined, Bermuda-registered aircraft reported problems about a minute after take-off from Biggin Hill in south London en route to Pau in south west France.

All five on board died when the private jet crashed into an empty house in Farnborough, south east London, causing a major fire which destroyed the building.

Returning their verdicts at Bromley Civic Centre, the jurors said the presence of “black box” flight recording equipment would have helped with the investigation into the cause of the crash.

Coroner Roy Palmer said he would be writing to the relevant authorities after investigators said their inquiries were hampered by the lack of a “black box” recorder.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) had also recommended changing the wording on an inflight checklist and making it mandatory to examine rivets during maintenance checks.