A NORTH-EAST pilot has revealed the contents of helicopter flight 85N’s mayday alert.

“MAYDAY, mayday – oh, f...” was the final message from the helicopter before the Super Puma plunged into the North Sea.

This brief and dramatic radio alert was heard by dozens of helicopter pilots and crews of North Sea vessels.

And as a team of UK and French aviation experts were today due to begin the search and recovery of the wreckage of the crashed helicopter, it has been revealed a number of pilots were too distressed to fly out of Aberdeen Airport.

A North-east pilot revealed the contents of the doomed flight’s final broadcast.

He said: “Normally the crew would say ‘mayday, mayday, mayday’ and then provide any other information they could, including their position, what had gone wrong if they knew this and any action they intended to take.

“In this case, all that was said was ‘mayday, mayday – oh, f...’ and then silence.

“It is no surprise one or two pilots were distressed and upset and chose not to fly.

“Some of them were actually in the air and heard the mayday from the helicopter just before it crashed.”

The pilot – a veteran with more than 20 years’ experience – said he made a special effort to reassure his passengers.

“Obviously those flying in helicopters are very conscious of what had happened,” he said.

“Passengers who were due to be flying with Bond were flying with the two other operators at Aberdeen Airport instead – CHC Scotia and Bristow.

“Yesterday I made the point of saying it was understandable that they would feel less comfortable than they would have otherwise felt under normal circumstances.

“I have the utmost admiration for people who have a fear of flying but still get on with it. There are many offshore workers who do not enjoy flying to and from platforms but they still do it and they deserve our respect for that.

“There will be more people who refuse to fly and until the wreckage is recovered we will not know what has happened.”

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency has confirmed the search has ended for the eight men still unaccounted for from the downed aircraft.

Now the Air Accidents Investigation Branch must locate the main fuselage and pieces of wreckage which broke off.

The wreckage was today lying around 100 metres (328ft) below the surface but it was understood a large proportion of the aircraft had yet to be located.

A team from the AAIB – and several other agencies – was due at the crash site today to begin the recovery.

An AAIB spokesman said: “In accordance with normal protocols, the AAIB have invited representatives from the French accident investigation authority, Eurocopter – the helicopter’s manufacturer – the European Aviation Safety Agency and the UK Civil Aviation Authority to participate in the investigation.

“Preparations are currently under way to locate and recover the combined Voice and Flight Data Recorder and the wreckage.”

The AAIB has chartered the Vigilant to assist in the recovery operation and investigation.

The survey vessel, which arrived at the scene today, was one of several boats involved in the original search for survivors.

Divers and Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) will be used as the team attempt to find the fuselage and any components which broke off.

Several pieces from the helicopter were taken ashore at Peterhead yesterday – including what appeared to be one of the rotor blades.

In the days to come an AAIB Operations Inspector will collect witness statements from those who saw or heard the accident including those onboard the Normand Aurora, which was around three miles away from where the aircraft crashed.

Video footage from RAF Rescue helicopters was handed to Grampian Police on Wednesday evening, just hours after the multi-million pound aircraft crashed into the North Sea.

The AAIB investigators are expected to visit the Miller Platform where the helicopter had taken off, to speak to anyone who came into contact with the crew before take-off.

Once recovered, the aviation experts will carry out a brief inspection of the wreckage.

It will then be transported to the AAIB’s headquarters at Farnborough for a thorough examination.

A final report on the investigation could take months to produce.

A draft report will be sent to Bond Offshore Helicopters and bosses will have 28 days to comment before the final report is made public.

groberts@ajl.co.uk