Shropshire Star

Who is pilot Andrew Hill?

The Cambridge graduate was previously in the RAF and a captain with British Airways.

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Shoreham Airshow crash

Shoreham Airshow crash pilot Andrew Grenville Hill was a Cambridge graduate who was top of the class in the RAF, winning competitions for his flying.

A captain with British Airways until the tragedy, he grew up in Kent and went to Tonbridge School, a private boarding school that counts Norman Heatley – who turned penicillin into usable medicine – among its alumni.

Telling the court he was “reasonably academic” and an A-grade pupil at school, Hill was allowed to enrol at Cambridge University without taking the entrance exam, attending Christ’s College.

He began studying engineering and then transferred to computer science, graduating with an honours degree in 1985.

Going straight into the RAF afterwards, he won a competition when flying a Jet Provost and was a top performing student.

Shoreham air disaster explainer
(PA Graphics)

He was selected – or as he put it “creamed off the top” – to become an instructor.

Training in combat, he took part in active service for a month in the 1990s, monitoring no-fly zones in northern Iraq.

He also started to fly a Harrier – capable of vertical take-off and landing – and won an award for his work and ideas on improving aircraft safety procedures.

Turning to civil aviation, he became a commercial pilot, starting with Virgin Atlantic before moving to British Airways and progressing to the most senior position of captain.

He gained a reputation as an experienced pilot but nearly died at the side of the road after the Hawker Hunter he was flying in 2015 crashed in a fireball on to the A27 in West Sussex.

Hill, who now lives in Sandon, Buntingford, in Hertfordshire, suffered serious injuries and was placed into an induced coma before being discharged from hospital a month later.

He had fractured his nose, ribs and part of his lower spine and suffered a collapsed lung and serious bruising among other injuries.

Speaking for the first time in public since the incident when he gave evidence at the trial, he denied having a “cavalier” attitude, insisting he was known for his safety record.

Shoreham crash: the ‘bent loop’ manoeuvre
(PA Graphics)

He has never watched footage that captured the moment of the crash and lowered his head when is was played to jurors.

The court heard this was on medical advice from his doctor over fears of how it would affect him.

He is now in good health, with medical checks before and after the crash showing no signs of a condition that would have affected him at the time, the court heard.

The 54-year-old spent much of the proceedings taking notes while sitting in the dock or leaning down to follow documents of evidence.

Wearing a dark suit for the proceedings, his manner appeared jovial as he made a few jokes while standing in the witness box giving his testimony.

Described as a competent, “safety conscious” pilot and an “absolute gentleman”, he dismissed prosecutors’ claims he took risks, saying he was not “cavalier” and took a “very structured, disciplined approach” to display flying.

He told jurors he held back from flights he was not comfortable with and said the “primary aim” of displays was to “avoid risk”.

But Hill conceded he had only limited experience in the Hunter.

He told the court there may have been gaps in his training on what were termed “basic” details of how to fly the plane.

Hill also said he had not read some of the guidance notes on how to safely and properly  operate the aircraft.

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