Hexham crash pilot wants to fly again

A bolt had broken on the tail of their aircraft, which plummeted almost 1,000ft into trees beside Burgham Golf Course, near Felton, north of Morpeth.

Both men are lucky to be alive. Mr Martin's face had to be rebuilt after the control panel smashed into him, and his legs were broken in several places.

He still has no sense of taste. His right foot had been virtually snapped off, attached only by the main artery and the central nerve, but surgeons were able to reattach it. His left leg is now a centimetre shorter than it was and he will never make a 100% recovery.

He said: "My wife was asked to bring in photos of what I looked like before so they could see how to rebuild my face. She brought in pictures of George Clooney, but they told her they couldn't work miracles.

"It was like something out of the movie Face Off. They had to cut into the skin on my head and peel it down off my face, before working on me and then rolling the skin back up and stitching me up."

Now back at home in Shaws Park, Hexham, and being looked after by his wife Margaret, 49, Mr Martin, 50, told The Journal about his recovery and his ambition to get back into the air.

He said: "In September I went up in a helicopter again for the first time. I was fine with it really, not nervous at all. I'm hoping to get my medical certificate back, which means I can fly properly again. My aim is still to get back into the air ambulance as a pilot, but I don't know if that will ever happen. It is at least six months away.

"But I definitely won't be flying a microlight again, just because Margaret would be worried sick about me every time I went in the air. But I haven't lost my passion for flying at all."

Mr Martin has been a pilot for 33 years and had to use all his experience as his plane fell to earth. He said: "They are usually very safe aircraft. I'd had the plane for about 18 months and then the tail fell off. I have no memory of anything after we hit the trees. That is probably a good thing. I just remember flying along and hearing a bang. I turned round and saw the tail flying off. One of the bolts had snapped on one side and then the other went. The plane was virtually uncontrollable, but fortunately I managed to get it into some trees."

All Banbi aircraft like the one he was flying were grounded for several months as air accident investigators studied the wreckage. They found a fault in the bolts fixing the wing to the plane.

"I'm trying to get compensation, but we will have to see where that goes," he said. "Mentally you have bad days. Usually I'm positive, but there are times when it's really hard.

"The thing that has really helped me is all my friends. I think of it as a prison sentence: I just have to do the time.

"My wife Margaret has been an absolute star. I started getting up and about in June, I've been walking about. I've got limited amounts of movement in my arms and hands.

"I have been doing stuff on the internet and chatting with friends, doing work for the air ambulance. I'm trying to be a ground instructor in the future, but hopefully I can get back up in the air."