Grieving mother tells of pilot son’s last show

Chris Penistone, 31, a commercial airline pilot with Jet2 who was also qualified for aerobatic flying, died at the Methley Bridge Boatyard, near Castleford, after his single-seater aircraft plunged to the ground in front of a large crowd, which included his parents.

An inquest in Leeds heard yesterday that the night before the show on June 19 last year, friends had suggested Mr Penistone’s plan to perform three shows in a single day was over-ambitious.

His mother, Ann Penistone, also told the hearing that the weather on the morning of the show was unusually gusty, and she had thought it would not go ahead.

She said: “I spoke to Chris at about 3.30pm and asked him if he was still going to fly, because it was windy. He said he was fine.

“He had struggled that morning (with one display), but he was still going ahead. I thought it would be cancelled because of the weather.”

Mark Miles, a first officer pilot at Jet 2 who had worked with Mr Penistone for several years, was at the air show to see his friend perform and confirmed turbulence was an issue on the day.

In a statement read to the inquest, he said: “After his first show, Chris was talking about it and how he wasn’t happy with it.

“He complained about the weather, which was turbulent and gusty.”

Mr Miles added that his friend had also complained about display smoke getting into the cockpit of his plane on an earlier flight.

The jury were told how Mr Penistone was a popular young man who loved high-adrenalin activities and “took flying very seriously”.

His mother said: “Chris was a thrill-seeker. His hobbies reflected that – when he was skiing, if he could ski off-piste, he would.

“He loved rock climbing, mountaineering, canoeing – that’s why he enjoyed aerobatics.

“He led his life at 150mph, that’s how he did his life.”

Asked by Deputy Coroner Melanie Williamson whether her son, who lived at Knottingley, had been under any stress at the time of the incident, Mrs Penistone answered: “Chris had taken on a project with his dad, Colin, to build some flats on our land.

“He had taken some time off work to focus on this, and there’s the inevitable worry about getting the flats finished within the financial time, and there were also problems with the land.

“But we had done this before so it was nothing to make him ill.”

The 11-person jury also heard from air stewardess Rachel Dunn, who was Mr Penistone’s girlfriend until one week before the incident.

She said: “I flew with Chris in both commercial and small aircraft. He was always passionate about aviation.

“He lived on the edge. He loved showing off. He loved the excitement and did everything he could to enjoy life. Everybody loved him.

“Yes he was tired, he had been having sleepless nights. He wanted to make the building project work, and there were obstacles – but that’s just normal when you’re building.”

She added: “I trusted him 100 per cent. He was so safe up there. He wouldn’t have done something if he hadn’t known what he was doing.

“Sometimes he got a ticking off at the air club for flying lower than he should. Yes, he was a daredevil, he liked the thrill of flying and the stunts. But I wouldn’t say it was to the detriment of his safety.”

The inquest, which is due to last three days, continues.