On 13 March 2014, an AgustaWestland AW139 helicopter of Haughey Air crashed shortly after taking off at night in fog from Gillingham, Norfolk, United Kingdom, killing all four people on board.

The subsequent investigation concluded that the flight crew may have been subject to somatogravic illusion due to the lack of external visual cues, inducing them to manoeuvre the aircraft into the ground instead of climbing away.

[3] The Norfolk Constabulary asked the Police Service of Northern Ireland for assistance with their investigations into the accident.

[5] The aircraft was built in Italy in 2012 and registered in the United Kingdom to Haughey Air on 18 September 2012.

Lord Ballyedmond had initiated legal proceedings in September 2013 against AgustaWestland over safety concerns relating to oil leaks and rotor blade issues,[11] as well as problems with the aircraft's communication and navigation systems.

[7] A Special Bulletin published by the AAIB on 4 April revealed that there had been no mechanical failure with the helicopter and that it had not contacted any object between taking off and the crash site.

The cause of the accident was pilot error, with spatial disorientation due to somatogravic illusion a major factor.

After hearing that all four people died from head and chest injuries sustained in the accident, the inquest was adjourned until 24 July.