British dad whose son died in Grand Canyon helicopter inferno warns there may be 8,000 ‘flying bombs’ in US
A father, who is to receive a $100m (£78m) settlement after his son died in a helicopter inferno, has told Sky News there could be around 8,000 “flying bombs” in the US due to the danger of fuel tanks that might rupture.
British tourist Jonathan Udall, 31, suffered burns to over 90% of his body after the aircraft burst into flames in the Grand Canyon.
He died after spending 12 days in hospital following the tragedy that occurred when the Airbus EC130 B4 came down shortly before sunset on 10 February 2018.
His newlywed wife Ellie Udall, 29, brothers Stuart and Jason Hill, 30 and 32, and Stuart’s 27-year-old girlfriend Becky Dobson, also died in the crash.
Mr Udall’s parents claimed in a wrongful death lawsuit that their son, originally from Southampton, could have survived if it was not for the post-crash fire – caused by the helicopter’s fuel tank that they claim was prone to rupturing.
Mr Udall’s father, Philip, said his son and daughter-in-law “were perfect, they had it all”.
Jonathan and Ellie Udall were two of five people who died in the tragedy
“John was a very successful businessman in the financial world”, working as the southeast manager for Yorkshire Building Society and “he had a blossoming career,” said Mr Udall. Ellie also worked for the same company and “she was incredible”.
He said the family used to have lots of meals together but there was now a “huge hole where they used to sit”.
“There’s nobody in it. There will forever be two seats empty.”
Mr Udall now wants all helicopters in the US to be fitted with crash-resistant fuel systems.
He said that if this doesn’t happen, other people “are going to die” and “it could be your children next”.
The helicopter in which his son lost his life did not have such a system, and he said he had it on “good authority” that if it had been fitted with one, “they [John and Ellie] would have got out”.
“The system won’t completely prevent fire. What it does do is buy time to get out,” he added.
Philip Udall said: “There is a loophole in the law [in the US] that allows helicopters to fly without a crash-resistant fuel system – so basically it’s a flying bomb.”
The helicopter crashed in the Grand Canyon in 2018
“And that’s our lawyer’s words. It’s a plastic container about as good as a milk bottle, that you’ve got the fuel in. When the helicopter goes down it just fractures and the fuel is out. This has been going on since 1994.”
Mr Udall said he believes there are around 170 crashes that have happened which were considered to be survivable “and it’s all not survivable because of these fuel tanks”.
He said anyone thinking of getting into a helicopter should ask the following question: “Does this helicopter have a crash-resistant fuel system?”
He said “if the answer is no, I would think very carefully about whether I got into it or not”.
“The Grand Canyon is a rough place. There are mountains, valleys. It’s a very turbulent environment.”
The company which ran the tragic flight in which Jonathan and Ellie later died has since fitted all its aircraft with crash-resistant fuel systems.
What does the law say in America?
Mr Udall stated a law was introduced in the US in 1994 which said all helicopters should have such systems, except ones that were designed in the 1970s but were then modified.
“They didn’t need to have [these systems] so manufacturers took advantage of it, [it was] cheaper.”
“There could be something like 8,000 helicopters flying around looking for somewhere to explode.”
He also said the law was changed in recent years which ruled all newly-built helicopters have to have crash-resistant fuel systems.
“We are looking at what we can do because there are still people climbing into helicopters not aware of… what they are sitting on, because the fuel tank is just behind your head,” Mr Udall warned.
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Video shows survivor fleeing wreckage
Payout ‘means nothing to us’
The £78m payout he received over his son’s death “means nothing to us”, he added.
“What it means is we have a resource we can call on that we can use, that we can try and get the situation improved. That was the reason for doing it.”
He said he had already provided equipment to burns units and was getting involved with charities.
“The most important thing is to try to move the clock on so there are no flying bombs.”
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Under the settlement approved by a US judge in Clark County, Nevada, on Friday, Philip and Marlene Udall, will receive $24.6m (£19.3m) from the helicopter operator, Papillon Airways, and $75.4m (£59.3m) from its French manufacturer, Airbus Helicopters SAS.
A 2021 report by the National Transportation Safety Board report in the US concluded that a probable cause for the helicopter crash was the pilot losing control due to tailwind conditions.
The pilot, Scott Booth, told police that the aircraft had encountered a “violent gust of wind” and began to spin.
He fractured his lower left leg, and passenger Jennifer Barham had a spinal fracture in the crash. They also suffered severe burns but survived.
Since then, both of Mr Booth’s legs have been amputated.
UK
Pictured: Boy killed in Gateshead industrial estate fire – 14 children arrested on suspicion of manslaughter
Tributes have been paid to 14-year-old Layton Carr who died in a fire at an industrial estate.
Eleven boys and three girls, aged between 11 and 14 years, have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter after the incident in Gateshead on Friday. They remain in police custody.
Police were alerted to a fire at Fairfield industrial park in the Bill Quay area
Firefighters raced to Fairfield industrial park in the Bill Quay area shortly after 8pm, putting out the blaze a short time later.
Police then issued an appeal for a missing boy, Layton Carr, who was believed to be in the area at the time.
In a statement, the force said that “sadly, following searches, a body believed to be that of 14-year-old Layton Carr was located deceased inside the building”.
Layton’s next of kin have been informed and are being supported by specialist officers, police added.
Layton has been described as a ‘beautiful soul’
A fundraising page on GoFundMe has been set up to help Layton’s mother pay for funeral costs.
Organiser Stephanie Simpson said: “The last thing Georgia needs to stress trying to pay for a funeral for her Boy Any donations will help thank you.”
One tribute in a Facebook post read: “Can’t believe I’m writing this my nephew RIP Layton 💔 forever 14 you’ll be a massive miss, thinking of my sister and 2 beautiful nieces right now.”
Another added: “My boy ❤️ my baby cousin, my Layton. Nothing will ever come close to the pain I feel right now. Forever 14. I’ll miss you sausage.”
A third said: “Rest in peace big lad such a beautiful soul taken far to soon my thoughts are with you Gee stay strong girl hear for u always.”
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Detective Chief Inspector Louise Jenkins, of Northumbria Police, also said: “This is an extremely tragic incident where a boy has sadly lost his life.”
She added that the force’s “thoughts are with Layton’s family as they begin to attempt to process the loss of their loved one”.
They are working to establish “the full circumstances surrounding the incident” and officers will be in the area to “offer reassurance to the public”, she added.
A cordon remains in place at the site while police carry out enquiries.
Sky News can reveal that the government has rowed back on a national compensation scheme for victims of child sexual abuse, despite it being promised under the previous Conservative administration.
Warning – this story contains references to sexual and physical abuse
A National Redress Scheme was one of 20 key recommendations made by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), but a Home Office report reveals the government has scrapped it because of the cost.
Marie, who is 71, suffered alleged sexual, physical, and emotional abuse at Greenfield House Convent in St Helens, Merseyside, between 1959 and 1962, and is still fighting for compensation.
Greenfield House Convent, where Marie says she was abused
As soon as she arrived as a six-year-old, Marie says her hair was cut off, her name changed, and she experienced regular beatings from the nuns and students.
She claims a nun instigated the violence, including when Marie was held down so that her legs were “spread-eagled” as she was sexually abused with a coat hanger.
Merseyside Police investigated claims of abuse at the convent, but in 2016, a suspect died before charges could be brought.
Marie has received an apology from the Catholic body that ran the home; she tried to sue them, but her claim was rejected because it was filed too long after the alleged abuse.
Marie, 71, is still fighting for compensation for the abuse she says she suffered as a child
In February, ministers said the law would change for victims of sexual abuse trying to sue institutions for damages, which was a recommendation from the IICSA.
Previously, people had to make a civil claim before they were 21, unless the victim could prove a fair trial could proceed despite the time lapse.
Campaigners argued for the time limit to be removed as, on average, victims wait 26 years to come forward. Changes to the 1980 Limitation Act could lead to more people making claims.
Peter Garsden, President of The Association of Child Abuse Lawyers
Civil cases ‘can take three to five years’
But Peter Garsden, president of the Association of Child Abuse Lawyers, worries that when it comes to historical abuse where the defendant is dead, institutions will still argue that it is impossible to have a fair trial and will fight to have the case thrown out of court.
Mr Garsden said it takes “between three and five years” for a civil case to get to trial.
He warned that claimants “can end up losing if you go through that process. Whereas the Redress Scheme would be quicker, much more straightforward, and much more likely to give justice to the victims”.
Victim awarded £10 compensation
Jimbo, who was a victim of abuse at St Aidan’s children’s home in Cheshire, took his case to the High Court twice and the Court of Appeal three times, but, after 13 years, all he ended up with was £10 for his bus fare to court.
Despite the Lord Justice of Appeal saying he believed that the abuse had occurred, Jimbo lost his claim because of the time limit for child sexual abuse claims to be made.
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Neither Marie nor Jimbo is likely to benefit from the removal of the time limit for personal injury claims, which is why Mr Garsden is calling on the government to implement a National Redress Scheme for victims of sexual abuse, as recommended by the IICSA.
Hundreds of millions paid to victims
The governments in Scotland and Northern Ireland have set up compensation schemes and paid hundreds of millions of pounds to victims.
In 2023, the then Conservative government said a similar scheme would be organised for England and Wales.
But the Home Office admitted in its Tackling Child Sexual Abuse: Progress Update that it “is not currently taking forward any further steps on the IICSA proposal for a separate, national financial redress scheme for all survivors of child sexual abuse”.
“In the current fiscal environment, this recommendation is very difficult to take forward,” it added.
For victims, the scheme was the last chance of compensation for a lifetime blighted by abuse.
“The money is about justice and about all the other people who have had to suffer this abuse,” Marie said.
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