McRae's AS355 (350?) Lost drivebelt!

I am amazed that anyone could write such utter rubbish!
Don't newspapers check anything nowadays?
Apparently they can't find the "drivebelt" to the main rotor! A Squirrel
doesn't have one!*
And why haven't they noticed yet that it's an AS350 single not an AS355 Twin
Squirrel?
At least some of the comments at the end show some common sense.

A plea for the media to wait for the AAIB report rather than print this
uninformed speculation

Slatts
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SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY
Sun 23 Sep 2007

McRae crash blamed on fault in helicopter
RICHARD ELIAS
THE helicopter crash which claimed the lives of rally ace Colin McRae, his
son and two other passengers could have been caused by the failure of a
component which links the engine to the rotor blades, Scotland on Sunday can
reveal.
Police sources say they are almost certain the tragedy was caused by
mechanical failure rather than pilot error. It is understood one of the
theories being examined is whether the Twin Squirrel's drive belt failed,
causing a sudden and catastrophic loss of power.

Sources close to the inquiry claim that no trace of the belt has yet been
found, a possible indication that the vital component broke - or
disintegrated - immediately before the accident.
McRae's helicopter crashed in a wooded area on his Lanark estate last
Saturday afternoon. The driver, 39, died instantly along with his
five-year-old son Johnny, his best friend Ben Porcelli, six, and family
friend Graeme Duncan, 37.
Experts from the Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) have been working
with Strathclyde Police to try to establish what caused the tragedy.
Although the official report will not be made public for at least several
months, initial findings appear to indicate a fault with the aircraft and
not the pilot.
Officially, the inquiry team is keeping an "open mind" about the possible
causes but they privately admit to having "virtually ruled out" pilot error.
A police source said: "It looks as if it was a mechanical fault, something
which they knew nothing about and something they could do nothing about once
they took off."
According to another insider, the inquiry is focusing on a specific part of
the Eurocopter Twin Squirrel which, despite an intensive search, has yet to
be found.
The drive belt transfers power from the engine to spin the rotors and must
be regularly maintained and replaced.
The source said: "Every part of the helicopter except for a drive belt can
be accounted for. This part is giving the crash investigators the greatest
cause for concern."
The aircraft, which costs around £500,000 new, is one of the world's most
popular helicopters and has an enviable safety record but has been involved
in other high-profile incidents.
In May, Chelsea FC director Philip Carter, 44, and his 17-year-old son
Andrew died, along with family friend Jonathan Waller and pilot Stephen
Holdich, when their helicopter crashed in Cambridgeshire as they returned
home from watching their club play Liverpool in the Champions League.
In 1996, multi-millionaire Chelsea director Matthew Harding died along with
three others when the Twin Squirrel he was flying crashed in the Cheshire
countryside.
The McRae family declined to comment on the cause of the accident but
Colin's father, Jimmy, has already stated that he does not believe his son
caused the crash.
A spokesman for the AAIB declined to comment, saying the inquiry was still
ongoing and would not be completed for some months.
No one was available for comment from Eurocopter, the French-based
manufacturers of the Squirrel aircraft.
Aberdeen-based aviation expert Jim Ferguson said: "People like the Squirrel.
They are a nice little aircraft and they are very popular, reliable and
normally safe."

http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1520782007


* OK it has a hydraulic belt but that failure is a controllable situation.