THE FIRST indications of the cause of the Shoreham air crash could be revealed shortly.

The Air Accident Investigation Branch could publish the first information from its examination of the scene of the crash in the next few days.

Further huge sections of the stricken Hawker Hunter were removed from the site beside the A27 yesterday as part of the painstaking, slow process of piecing together what happened.

A spokesman for the Department for Transport, which runs the AAIB, said: “The AAIB will be producing a preliminary report but we cannot say exactly when that will be.”

It is thought the preliminary investigation will confirm the belief that pilot Andy Hill did not eject from his seat before the impact which left 11 feared dead.

The report is likely to include findings from the scene as well as whether any cockpit voice recordings that were made between the pilot and air traffic control.

Aviation expert Daniel Gleave said video footage of the doomed loop-the-loop did not appear to show any evidence of the pilot attempting to eject.

He said: “I very much doubt the pilot tried to eject.

“The reason for that is in an old ejector seat, if you are sinking down to the ground the rocket will not propel you enough upwards.

“If you open it and the plane is sinking, the parachute won’t open in time.”

Paramedics previously told The Argus the pilot – who is still in a medically induced coma at the Royal Sussex County Hospital – had been removed from the seat of the plane.

Leslie Hatcher, 71, a former RAF instructor who also flew Hawker Hunters, condemned Mr Hill as a “complete lunatic”.

He told The Times: “That guy came in at about 100ft, much lower than the 500ft minimum height allowed. He pulled up and he was going too slowly.

“The guy must have been a complete lunatic to come in at 100ft and think he could pull out of it (the loop) safely.”

However, he has previously been hailed as an “extremely experienced” pilot.

Sussex Police major crime team, scenes of crimes officers and AAIB investigators will continue their fingertip search of the scene for the fifth day today but said the death toll was unlikely to rise.

Meanwhile, a hospital boss has praised emergency services for their response to the accident and passed his condolences on to all those affected.

Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust chief executive Matthew Kershaw said: “The events at the Shoreham Airshow are truly devastating and incredibly sad.

“The local population is in shock and the repercussions will be felt for a long time to come.

“I would like to add my heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of those who lost their lives to those which have already been expressed.

“The emergency services plan and rehearse for this type of catastrophic incident on a very regular basis but it is extremely rare for that preparation to be tested in reality as it was this weekend.

“For our part, we were asked to participate in the major Iincident at about 2pm on Saturday.

“I was in touch with the ambulance trust and our own control centre and have heard, from many of those who were on site, that our response was exceptional.

“Everyone involved, clinical and non-clinical, responded with quiet and calm efficiency and raised their game to ensure we were ready to receive any casualties.

“Major events do invariably bring out the best in people and our response this weekend is another reason for us all to be very proud of the trust and our staff.”