A decorated ex-Raf hunter pilot committed suicide by driving in the wrong direction along a highway and going head to another car, killing four people, heard an investigation.
Richard John Woods, 40, was almost four times the legal limit for Drive-Drive when his Blue Skoda Fabia plowed in a Toyota Yaris on the M6 Northbound Carriageway in Cumbria in Cumbria on 15 October last year.
Before the incident, Woods had done more than 20 searches that cover suicide, an investigation into his death was told.
The crash saw a fire ball flood the Glasgow-bound Toyota and four of the five passengers, including two children, were declared dead on the spot.
Jaroslaw Rossa, 42 years old, died with his children, the 15-year-old Filip and seven-year-old Dominic.
Mr. Rossa's partner, Jade Mcenroe, 33 years old, died too, but her son Arran, also seven, survived the tragedy despite serious injuries.
A two -thirds empty bottle of gin was found in the crashed Skoda of Woods after the incident.
Cockermouth Coroners' Court heard that Woods had left a flight safety conference in Ribby Hall Village at Preston, Lancashire, prior to the incident.
Jaroslaw Rossa and Sons Dominic and Filip were killed together with Jade Mcenroe. Her son Arran Martin, right, was the only survivor
Jade Mcenroe and Jaroslaw Rossa traveled back to Glasgow with their children when the tragedy took place
During morning lectures he heard snoring and others thought he might have been under the influence of alcohol.
He did not show up before the afternoon session and instead went north on the M6.
Around 3.30 pm eyewitnesses initially saw his Skoda travel north. It drove between all three lanes and traveled irregularly.
Witness Bryony Bedborough later said to the police: “We were terrified of what was going to happen,” adding that he looked “as if he were drunk or drugs.”
She described Woods as “as if he had sound, in his own bubble.”
Woods went to the hard shoulder before he made a sudden U-turn over the northern roadway, on his way to the south in a straight line for more than a mile.
There was a near-miss with a vehicle, Gavin Howe remembered a 'blue blur', waving and reflective: “How I succeeded in avoiding that this vehicle was incredible.”
Woods traveled further, neither braking nor dissatisfied action while colliding with the Yaris Frontaal. The police discovered that he probably traveled at about 70 km / h at the time of the collision.
A motorist remembered a 'loud explosion' and 'debris raining from above'.
“The director of the (Yaris) had no time to respond,” said witness Gavin Walsh.
While the Yaris turned on his side and was flooded in flames, bystanders hurried to try to help, with emergency services quickly on the spot.
Woods died of multiple injuries. Analysis of his mobile phone revealed 26 previous searches that cover suicide and suicide of military personnel abroad.
Det Sergt Deb Story, of the serious collision unit of Cumbria Police, concluded after considering all the proof that Mr. Woods wanted to end his life.
She told yesterday's hearing: 'I would say it was a deliberate act. If Mr. Woods had survived, I would have presented the case in search of an indictment for manslaughter. '
Assistant Cumbria Coroner Mrs. Margaret Taylor, registered a conclusion of suicide and called the incident a 'catastrophe'.
Mrs Taylor said: “The only thing I can do at this stage is to express my condolences to the family for the tragedy that arose, but also to remember those involved as collateral at this tragic event.”
The hearing was told that Woods, originally from Hexham, was Northumbria, was a lieutenant and then squadron leader was like a fast Jet pilot during a major 14-year RAF career.
He toured twice through Afghanistan, completed three tours of Iraq – received a recommendation for one – before he left the RAF in 2019.
He later worked for BAE systems, based in Raf Marham in Norfolk, as a lead contractor -instructor pilot.
The research heard that he had a history of fear and harmful alcohol consumption, for which he later received professional help.
He told a counselor of his previous fighter jay: 'I dropped bombs. It was just a job. '
That counselor ultimately formed the position that he wanted to improve his life and to get back on the right track.
In a explanation read to the investigation, the father of Mr. Woods, Keith, said: “Richard was a decent, honorable man, modest and friendly towards others; just a troubled soul who lost the way.”
An investigation into the death of Jaroslaw, Filip and Dominic Rossa and Jade Mcenroe will be held in Cockermouth on 3 April.
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