A Horsforth Scout leader was killed when he crashed a helicopter by not reacting quickly enough to an engine failure, according to an official report.

Father-of-three Kim Carter, 54, a novice pilot, died when his Robinson R22 helicopter crashed into a field near a motorway.

The pilot, a student with Multiflight based at Leeds-Bradford Airport in Yeadon, had only flown solo five times before the fatal flight on February 14, said the report by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB).

The report said Mr Carter’s "relatively low" flight experience meant he was not quick enough in re-starting the helicopter’s engine after it failed and the aircraft plummeted to the ground near Sandtoft Aerodrome, Scunthorpe.

The trainee pilot, a divorcee, of Shetcliffe Lane, East Bierley, Bradford, had been learning to fly since August 2005 but had only four hours’ solo flying experience.

He made his first solo flight in July 2007 after completing 55 hours of training.

On the day of the fatal crash he had set off from the Multiflight base and together with his instructor flew to Sandtoft Airfield near Scunthorpe in order to do some solo training. At about 12.30pm, a witness who was driving along the motorway reported the helicopter at an "abnormal angle" and "wobbling" before spinning and plunging to the ground.

The report reads: "He (the witness) saw it fall to the ground, apparently out of control."

Another witness, 59-year-old farmer David Cundall, raced to the scene after hearing a "crack" before the aircraft disappeared out of sight.

The report said: "The local area rescue services, including the air ambulance, arrived at the scene. All attempts to resuscitate the pilot were, however, unsuccessful."

Mr Carter, who had lived in Horsforth for many years before moving to Bradford, was a group leader for the 7th Airedale Scouts.

Following his death, prayers were said by the congregation at St Margaret’s Church, the Scout group’s base.

At the time, the Reverend Rosemarie Hayes, vicar at St Margaret’s, paid tribute to Mr Carter. She said: "He touched so many young lives and the lives of the children’s parents. He was also very supportive of the church.

"It is a very sad loss. He was a very amiable man and was the sort of person you took to. He had an enthusiastic and bouncy personality."

Derek Bulmer, an assistant Scout leader and friend of Mr Carter, said: "He made a lot of friends in the Scouts and he will be sadly missed."

Mr Carter was a project engineer at Ilkley electrical engineering firm NG Bailey.

After his death, a spokesman for the firm said: "Kim was a highly regarded employee, having worked for the company as a project engineer for 28 years. He will be sorely missed by his colleagues and friends".

Evidence which emerged after the crash showed that the helicopter should have been flown with the ignition switch selected at "both" so that the failure of one magneto – a type of electrical generator – would not result in the engine stopping.

However, it was inadvertently set to the "left" position during the pre-flight checks and the selected left magneto had failed in flight.

The pilot was not able to maintain rotor speed following the engine failure, which was likely to be "sudden and without warning".

The loss of power caused the rotor to strike the helicopter’s tail, causing a loss of control for the pilot.