CRASH PLANE HAD HISTORY OF MISFIRES; Pilot's evidence.

Byline: DONNA WATSON 

A PLANE in which eight people were killed had engine trouble months before the crash, a fatal accident inquiry heard yesterday.

Six of nine Airtours staff travelling from Glasgow to Aberdeen to man another holiday flight died, along with the two pilots, when the Cessna 404 Titan crashed just seconds after take-off in September 1999.

Yesterday, pilot Walter Alexander told the hearing at Paisley Sheriff Court he had trouble with the plane when he flew it from Glasgow to Benbecula the previous November.

Mr Alexander worked for Edinburgh Air Charter, owned by John Easson, one of the pilots who died in the plane, which had been used by Irish band Boyzone during a visit to Scotland.

Mr Alexander told the inquiry: "About halfway into the flight, we began to encounter difficulties.

"There was clearly a problem with the left-hand engine because it was making a repetitive sound like a car engine misfiring.

"The manifold's pressure gauge showed a slight loss of power and I thought it best to turn around and go back to Glasgow Airport.

"The left engine still seemed to be performing in a suitable manner but I decided to shut it down to prevent any further damage. It was continuing to make this sound and I didn't want the problem to get any worse.

"Shutting down the left engine would have no immediate bearing on the right engine as they operate independently of each other.

"I later discovered what we had suffered was an ignition problem."

The inquiry had previously heard from witnesses on the ground who said they watched the right-hand propeller of the plane slow down and almost stop before the aircraft came crashing to the ground.

The three survivors have told of hearing a banging noise from the right-hand side of the plane just before it began its decent.

Mr Alexander said he had worked for Mr Easson for seven years. He said: "John was a good pilot."

The inquiry continues.