Morecambe Bay helicopter crash debris recovered

Parts of a helicopter which crashed into the sea, killing seven, have been salvaged and returned to shore but the flight recorder, which may hold vital clues about the cause of the accident at Morecambe Bay on 27 December, is yet to recovered.

A Department of Transport spokeswoman said the wreckage would be analysed at an Air Accidents Investigation base. The debris, which was recovered on Tuesday, will be sent to a base in Farnborough. The search was suspended because of poor weather on Wednesday.

"We have not yet recovered the flight recorder but we believe we know its location," the DoT spokeswoman said. The search will resume once weather conditions allow."

The Eurocopter AS365N had been in the process of collecting workers from Centrica gas rigs when it crashed.

Police and CHC Helicopter Corporation, the helicopter's owners, have refused to comment on speculation that the accident was caused by a mechanical failure. The bodies of six of those killed in the crash off the Lancashire coast have been recovered. A seventh man, Keith Smith, 57, from Stockton-on-Tees, is missing presumed dead.

An inquest into the deaths was opened in Blackpool last week before being adjourned.

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