Briton Killed In Helicopter Crash Is Named

The British man on board a helicopter which crashed off the coast of Norway has been named as Iain Stuart.

Mr Stuart, aged 41, was from Laurencekirk in Aberdeenshire, and worked for oilfield services company Halliburton.

The Super Puma was carrying two crew and 11 passengers from the North Sea Gullfaks B oil field when it crashed off the Norwegian coast while flying to Flesland Airport in Bergen on Friday.

Mr Stuart was a member of Brechin Golf Club, where the flag has been flown at half mast.

In tributes posted on social media, Mr Stuart was described as "always a gent" and "a top bloke".

Field operators Statoil said the pilots of the helicopter - a Norwegian and an Italian - were CHC Helicopter staff.

The 10 other Norwegian passengers were employed by companies including Schlumberger, Aker Solutions, and Statoil.

Their names have not yet been released.

All UK commercial passenger flights using the Airbus EC225LP - or Super Puma - model have been grounded by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) following the accident.

The aircraft shattered into pieces when it smashed into the rocky shoreline of Turoey, a tiny island outside Bergen, Norway's second-largest city.

Norwegian television showed footage of what appeared to be a helicopter rotor blade spiralling down minutes before the helicopter crashed.

Emergency crews pulled the wrecked fuselage out of the sea on Saturday ahead of an investigation into the cause.

A team from the UK's Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) is assisting with the investigation.