Officials: Fatal Norway helicopter crash due to technical error

A helicopter crash in Norway that killed 13 people, including a British father-of-two was caused by technical error, officials say.

The helicopter was ferrying 11 workers and two crew from a Norwegian oil platform when it came down in the North Sea near the city of Bergen, on Friday.

Iain Stuart, 41, from Laurencekirk in Aberdeenshire, was among the victims.

The crashed helicopter's flight recorders were recovered by the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority.

Today the country's accident investigation board said: "We are as certain as we can be that a technical error caused the accident.

"We don't think it was due to human misinterpretations."

The family of Iain Stuart, a British national who died in a helicopter crash off the coast of Norway, have said they have been left "heartbroken" by the loss of "a loving husband and devoted father".

Mr Stuart was one of 13 victims who died when the Airbus Super Puma aircraft they were travelling on crashed on Friday off the Norwegian coast.

Police Scotland issued a statement on behalf of Mr Stuart's family today saying they were "devastated at the loss of Iain in Friday's tragic helicopter crash in Norway."

The British national who died in a helicopter crash off the coast of Norway has been named locally as Iain Stuart, 41, from Laurencekirk in Aberdeenshire.

Mr Stuart was working for oilfield services company Halliburton, which earlier confirmed that four of its employees were among the 13 victims of the crash.

The Airbus Super Puma went down on Friday off the Norwegian coast while on its way to shore from Statoil's Gullfaks B platform in the North Sea.

Following the crash, the UK Civil Aviation Authority suspended flights of a particular model of Super Puma helicopter.

The British victim of Friday's helicopter crash off the coast of Norway was a 41-year-old man working for oilfield services company, Halliburton.

Halliburton confirmed that four of their employees, including the still unnamed British man, were among the 13 victims.

A statement from the company read: "Halliburton is saddened to confirm four employees died in the helicopter accident that occurred yesterday off the coast of Norway.

"We are working with local emergency officials as they continue their investigation into this tragic event.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with our employees and their loved ones. Out of respect for the families' privacy, we are not releasing any additional information at this time."

The aviation industry responded quickly to Norway's helicopter crash, which left all 13 passengers on board presumed dead.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority said all UK commercial passenger flights using the Airbus EC225LP helicopter have been grounded.

Meanwhile, the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority has said it has recovered the crashed helicopter's flight recorders.

Work has already begun on removing the wreckage, as Norwegian authorities begin their investigation to uncover the causes of the accident.

ITV News Correspondent Juliet Bremner reports:

The Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority has said it has recovered the crashed helicopter's flight recorders.

Spokeswoman Hege Aalstad confirmed the black boxes had been found but did not give any further details.

The flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder could help explain the causes of the crash.

The statement comes after the UK Civil Aviation Authority announced that all UK commercial passenger flights using the Airbus EC225LP helicopter are grounded as of 9pm on Friday.

Norway's prime minister Erna Solberg posted a message on Twitter describing the Norwegian helicopter disaster as "horrifying".

All 13 people on board the aircraft are presumed dead, according to Norwegian police.

The British Airline Pilots Association (BALPA) has said the thoughts and prayers of all British pilots are with those affected by the helicopter crash in Norway.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority has said it has suspended flights of Super Puma helicopters of the same type that crashed off the coast of Norway.

The authority added that its thoughts are with those affected by the accident.

The Airbus Super Puma helicopter that crashed off Norway's coast had maintenance servicing delayed twice in 2015, a Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority official told local media.

Hege Aalstad, a senior legal adviser at the authority, said: "I can confirm that this specific helicopter had seen its maintenance delayed. It is correct that there was an application for a so-called travel-time extension.

"The first one was for a delay of 100 flying hours ... and the other was also for 100 flying hours."

The aviation authority also said that it has imposed a flying ban on the helicopter type involved the crash

All 13 passengers on board the helicopter that crashed near the city Bergen are presumed dead, according to Norwegian police. One British and one Italian national are among the casualties.

The Rescue Coordination Centre said search and rescue operations have been called off.