A pilot whose aircraft crashed during the Shoreham Airshow and killed 11 people will be charged with manslaughter, according to the CPS.

Andy Hill, from Sandon, Hertfordshire, will also be formally charged with endangering the safety of an aircraft.

Police and prosecutors met families of victims of the disaster on Wednesday evening to confirm that the pilot is now facing criminal charges.

Eleven men died when the vintage Hawker Hunter aircraft came down onto the busy A27 in West Sussex when Mr Hill attempted a loop manoeuvre on 22 August 2015.

Image: The remains of the Hawker Hunter fighter jet are lifted by crane in August 2015

Simon Ringrose, CPS specialist prosecutor, said: "Following a careful review of the evidence I have found there is sufficient evidence to charge Mr Hill with the manslaughter by gross negligence of the eleven men who died.


"I have also authorised a further charge against Mr Hill of endangering an air craft, contrary to Article 127 of the Air Navigation Order 2009."

Mr Hill, who turns 54 on Thursday, is due to appear before Westminster Magistrates' Court on April 19.

He will be charged with 11 counts of manslaughter by gross negligence, an offence which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, and one count of endangering an aircraft, which can incur a jail term of up to five years, the CPS said.

An earlier investigation by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) found a series of pilot errors caused the crash.

Image: Mr Hill received flying training with the Royal Air Force

The final report by the AAIB found that Mr Hill failed to gain enough height to complete the "bent loop" manoeuvre he attempted moments before crashing.

It would have been possible for him to abandon the manoeuvre, but it was concluded that Mr Hill either deemed it unnecessary or did not know how to pull out.

Mr Hill survived the crash after being thrown clear from the plane. He was taken to hospital in a critical condition and placed in a medically induced coma. He was discharged from hospital the following month after recovering.

Mr Hill received flying training with the RAF and served as an instructor and fast jet pilot before going into commercial aviation.

He was authorised by the Civil Aviation Authority to fly the Hawker Hunter in displays and was issued with a medical certificate in January 2015, which was valid for 12 months.

The AAIB report found the plane was not supposed to have been performing its display over the A27, but instead over the airfield.

The error meant that event organisers had no control over where the plane came down.

In the immediate aftermath of the crash, the Civil Aviation Authority grounded all Hawker Hunter aircraft and restricted other vintage jets flying over land to performing fly-pasts only.

The distance between display lines and crowds was also increased.