Inquest opens into fatal helicopter crash

An inquest has opened into the deaths of three people killed in a helicopter crash on the Isle of Wight.

Justyna Czoska, 52, Wojciech Kowalkowski, 49 from Oxfordshire, and 54-year-old flying instructor Simon Hewitt from Lincolnshire were killed when the aircraft came down in a field near Shanklin on the morning of 25 August.

The coroner's officer said Dr Megan Jenkins, home office registered pathologist carried out the post-mortem examination at Southampton's St Mary's hospital mortuary on 27 August and the provisional cause of death was "multiple injuries".

The inquest at Isle Of Wight Coroner's Court has been adjourned until 5 March 2026 for all three victims.

The helicopter left Sandown Airport for a flying lesson on the Isle of Wight at 09:00 BST on Monday 25 August, with four people on board.

Witnesses reported the aircraft spiralling before crashing in a field alongside the A3020 at 09:20.

Mr Hewitt from Barton-upon-Humber in Lincolnshire, died in the crash alongside 52-year-old Ms Czoska and 49-year-old Mr Kowalkowski, who were both from Banbury, Oxfordshire.

A fourth person a man in his 30s was taken to hospital, where he remains in a stable condition.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) said an investigation into the crash is likely to take 12 months.

The families of those involved were not in the court but have previously released statements with the family of Ms Czoska currently trying to raise money for the bodies of Ms Czoska and Mr Kowalkowski to be sent back to their native country, Poland, for burial.

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