A paralysed campaigner died after a crash while filming a series for Apple's VR headset, an inquest has heard. Claire Lomas, 44, died when her microlight crashed in Jordan. She was the first person to complete a marathon in a 'bionic' suit.
Ms Lomas was paralysed from the chest down after a horse-riding accident at Osberton Horse Trials in Nottinghamshire in 2007. She died after she 'veered off the runway' and hit a large rock while landing the aircraft on July 15, 2024.
Inquest hears details of crash
An inquest at County Hall in Glenfield, Leicestershire, heard that Ms Lomas, who raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for charity, died of multiple severe traumatic injuries at King Hussein Medical Centre in the country's capital Amman more than five weeks after the incident.
Lina Zilinskaite, who is a senior producer for Atlantic Productions, told the inquest on Tuesday (August 18) that the company was commissioned by Apple to create a series for its Vision Pro headset. She told senior coroner for Rutland and North Leicestershire, Louise Pinder: "Each episode follows a different athlete performing some sort of challenge or feat. (It was) always controlled risk. Individuals were doing this as a big hobby or profession in some instances. We are not plucking people off the street to do it."
She added: "Claire had some experience with the media. We sort of felt reassured she knew how the media and the process worked. She was very enthusiastic and keen and excited about the opportunity."
Concerns before the flight
The inquest also heard that Ms Lomas got a licence to fly a microlight, which is a small aircraft, a few years before, and that the production company knew she needed help getting in and out of the specially adapted aircraft because she was paraplegic. Ms Zilinskaite stated that there were concerns Ms Lomas was nervous about flying the aircraft in Jordan, but the witness said: "She was absolutely sure she wanted to fly."
The coroner shared a report which showed the wind strength was 'light and from the left which is considered normal' on the day of the crash and it would have been preferable to have a smaller camera on the microlight, but it did not exceed the weight limit for take-off. The flight was cancelled the day before because of strong winds. According to Ms Zilinskaite, there were test flights with the camera mounted on the microlight in the UK and Ms Lomas had flown without the camera mounted in Jordan before the fatal crash. Ms Lomas flew in the air for about 15 minutes before attempting to land on the day of the crash.
Miss Pinder told the inquest that Ms Lomas 'hit a large rock' during landing and was taken by a standby ambulance to hospital in a critical condition. Ms Zilinskaite said she raised her phone to film Ms Lomas's landing, but instinctively did not press record because 'the approach was not quite straight on'.
Tributes and investigation
"One thing about Claire I learned, she was incredibly stubborn. When she set her mind to do something, she would absolutely do it. She was incredibly strong-willed," she said. Ms Lomas, who was a mother and was made an MBE in 2017, was 'excited' to come home with her family after spending weeks in hospital but then acquired an infection and deteriorated quickly before she died on August 22, the inquest heard.
Meanwhile, Ben Ashman, a microlight designer and manufacturer at Flylight Airsports, said Ms Lomas bought her own aircraft in 2022 or 2023, which the company adapted so there were no controls at her feet. Mr Ashman said he was concerned Ms Lomas was stressed before the flight because she posted on Facebook about putting her 'brave pants' on, which was 'unusual' for her. Saying he spoke to her, Mr Ashman stated: "She said 'let's do it'. I didn't want to turn around and say 'you shouldn't do it'. I didn't want to take away her confidence."
Mr Ashman, who was in Jordan at the time, said Ms Lomas's microlight descended at 20 degrees away from the centre of the runway and she appeared to try to stop her landing effort. He told the inquest there were no issues with the weather, no mechanical issues, and the 180-degree camera did not affect the microlight apart from adding about 15kg.
Ms Lomas's family members did not attend the hearing because it was 'too painful' being so close to the anniversary of her death, her relatives' representative Ben Bradley KC said. The coroner said her relatives are concerned about the care she received at the hospital in Jordan, but it is not within her jurisdiction to investigate that formally. The inquest continues.
