Pilot escapes as helicopter crashes into lake
A 61-year-old pilot has escaped unhurt after his helicopter plummeted into a Lake in England.
The JetRanger 206 was approaching Windermere, in the Lake District, shortly before 8am when it plunged into the water about half-a-mile from shore.
A spokesman for Cumbria Police said the craft appeared to have sunk but the pilot managed to swim to the shore suffering only from shock and cold.
The man, who is believed to be from Blackpool, Lancashire, was taken to Furness General Hospital.
The helicopter, thought to be owned by a company based at Chorley, Lancs, was on its way to Windermere to pick up a number of passengers when it crashed into the lake near Storrs Hall.
The Cumbria Police spokesman said the Air Accidents Investigation Branch had been informed.
"At 7.55am, we received a report from a member of the public that a helicopter may have come down in the Windermere area.
"Following police inquiries, it emerged that a helicopter had got into difficulties on its approach and come down in the lake about half a mile off shore.
"The only person on board was the pilot, a man aged 61 from the Blackpool area, who swam ashore. The helicopter had sunk and the pilot was obviously shocked, cold and wet but had no apparent injuries. "
