Full Report:

Seven South African policemen were killed in a helicopter crash on Friday at Emalahleni (formerly Witbank) about 130km east of Johannesburg, a police spokesman says. The Eurocopter BK117 reportedly crashed in a field about 10km from the town centre while landing in heavy mist.
The pilot, a crewman and five national intervention unit (NIU) commandos on their way to an armed robbery at a bakery were killed. There were no survivors.

A radio report says a second helicopter safely landed and the NIU commandos aboard arrested seven robbers. The crash is under investigation by both the police and SA Civil Aviation Authority. "The details are sketchy but it is believed the chopper crashed in an open field. The policemen are burnt beyond recognition," said Zweli Mnisi, the spokesman for the police minister Nathi Mthethwa. Reuters added Mnisi could not disclose the identities of the deceased.

http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9051:seven-safrican-police-killed-in-helicopter-crash&catid=3:Civil%20Security&Itemid=113

The pilot who crashed a police helicopter in Witbank in July 2010, killing seven police officers, was drunk, lacked training and ignored procedures.

This was the verdict of the eMalahleni Magistrate's Court, Mpumalanga, yesterday.

Magistrate Ernst du Plooy severely criticised police control systems and protocol but found that no one other than Captain Wikus Zaayman was to blame.

Du Plooy said the police's Pretoria Air Wing did not have mandatory alcohol testing.

Zaayman - who was carrying national intervention unit members from Pretoria to respond to a robbery - flew with a blood-alcohol level of 0.08g/100ml, four times over the legal limit.

Co-pilot Tinus Gouws was sober.

Zaayman was not qualified to fly in cloud and had not filed a flight plan .

Relying on witness testimony and GPS information, Du Plooy recounted the moments before the crash.

"[The helicopter] lost speed drastically, went in circles three times and changed direction. It went up and then down."

Gouws's wife, Diane, said the finding gave her no closure.

"We did not get answers here. Words cannot explain what we have been through these past years."

Evidence was led that Zaayman had been drinking wine with colleagues at the air wing's canteen the night before the crash. Witnesses testified that he was sober enough to drive himself home that night and there had been nothing untoward in his behaviour the next morning.

The court heard that, as the helicopter approached eMalahleni, it encountered cloud and Zaayman decided to fly above the cloud.

This was against police protocol, which stipulated that pilots find an alternative route when cloud was encountered.

"Flying [at high altitude] above the clouds and with the alcohol in his system, Captain Zaayman could have become disorientated," Du Plooy said.

Du Plooy said a detonated stun grenade found near the crash site five days later might have exploded inside the helicopter, which would account for the loss of control. But the grenade might have detonated after the crash.

https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2013-11-05-witbank-helicopter-crash-cop-pilot-flew-drunk/