'I need answers over dad's Chinook crash death'

Darren Neilly said he "won't stop until we have our answers"

A man whose father was killed when an RAF Chinook helicopter crashed in Scotland in 1994 has said he does not want to live with doubt over the circumstances of his death.

The crash on the Mull of Kintyre killed 25 intelligence experts and four special forces crew, including RUC officer Det Ch Supt Maurice McLaughlin Neilly.

His son, Darren Neilly, 44, from Huddersfield, said the government should reverse its decision not to hold a public inquiry into the incident.

The crash was initially blamed on pilot error, a finding that was overturned in 2011. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) previously said the incident was a "tragic accident".

The helicopter was en route from RAF Aldergrove in Northern Ireland to Fort George near Inverness when it went down, killing everyone on board.

"It's something that we can't change," Mr Neilly said.

"But I don't want to really live with pain or that doubt anymore of why things happened, we just want answers."

Four crew and 25 passengers were killed when the helicopter crashed in June 1994

Mr Neilly was 13 years old at the time of his father's death.

He described him as "a committed professional, dedicated to all communities in Northern Ireland" and said his passion was his family.

"He spent every minute with us, every second. We were always around him on trips, fishing, rugby, we were always doing something with him."

He said he and his brothers had "very fond memories" of their father.

"Those were great years for us, but they were taken from us," he said.

"We live with those memories with joy but also pain, because we could have had so much more."

The pilots, Flt Lt Richard Cook (left) and Flt Lt Jonathan Tapper, were eventually exonerated of blame for the crash following a fresh review of the evidence in 2011

In August Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer rejected calls for a judge-led inquiry into the crash.

In a letter to the families, Sir Keir said a public inquiry would not "bring any greater certainty" and would not be "in the public interest".

Mr Neilly is part of The Chinook Justice Campaign, which has released 110 "critical questions" about the tragedy.

The group's 47,000-signature petition is due to be handed into Downing Street later, calling for the ruling to be overturned.

A BBC documentary last year, Chinook: Zulu Delta 576, revealed that files relating to the crash had been sealed by the MOD for 100 years.

Mr Neilly said: "It's been 31 years, no answers and we've got 110 questions that need to be answered by the MOD.

"We'll never stop grieving for our lost loved ones. We need this to happen.

"Our prime minister has that opportunity to overturn his decision not to hold that public inquiry."

Esme Sparks was seven when her father was killed in the crash

Esme Sparks, from Darlington, was seven when her father Maj Gary Sparks was killed in the crash.

Her family has also urged the government to carry out a judge-led inquiry into the incident.

She said it had been ''incredibly difficult'' growing up without her father, especially because three decades on there were still so many unanswered questions.

''That flight should never have taken place and we now know that," she said.

"The aircraft was not airworthy. It was a show flight between the RAF and the Army and it's been devastating for us and all the other families.''

The crash happened at the southern tip of the Kintyre peninsula

Among the 110 questions, the campaign asks who authorised the mission, why that aircraft type was selected, and whether passengers and crew were warned of the risks.

David Hill, the campaign's technical expert, said refusal to grant a public inquiry and to seal key documents until 2094, was "a betrayal by the state" of both families and victims.

He said: "The prime minister and his defence ministers keep claiming that 'this was a tragic accident' and that there have been 'six inquiries' and that no fresh evidence is likely to emerge in a new judge-led public inquiry.

"This new list of 110 questions explodes that myth. It blows a massive hole in the government's argument because none of these questions have been answered properly."

Mr Neilly asked the prime minister to reconsider his decision: "Allow us to have this opportunity to put to rest something that has gone on for far too long."

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