Family, colleagues and admirers of Colin McRae and the other three people who died in the helicopter crash have been paying tribute to the former rally champion.
 
Rally Legend: Colin McRaeMcRae's father Jim, who was also a racing driver, issued a statement on behalf of the family saying: "Colin was a great son, a loving husband to Alison and a fantastic father to Johnny and his big sister Hollie.

"Johnny was a great wee guy, spending every spare minute with his dad, and even at this early stage it looked like he had the potential to carry on the family dynasty.

"Our thoughts are also very much with the families of Ben Porcelli and Graeme Duncan.

"Ben was a great buddy of Johnny's and they had always spent a lot of time together both in and out of school.

"Graeme, who now resides in France, had been a close friend of Colin's since their schooldays, and was back in Lanark on holiday.

"We are thankful for the overwhelming number of messages of support we have received from all around the world."

Ben's father Mark and mother Karen said: "We are absolutely devastated with the loss of our son Ben following this terrible accident.

"He was a charming, fun-loving and caring wee boy - the best boy in the world who enjoyed great times with his wee pal Johnny. It is just so tragic that their lives have been cut so short.

"Our thoughts also go out to the McRae and Duncan families."

Colin McRae's former co-driver Nicky Grist said "He was such a great character and will be sorely missed.

"We won 17 world championship events together. Nobody ever wanted to be up against him.

"We used to drive to the max and push everything to the absolute limit. But when it came to socialising we had great fun as well."

He said McRae's son Johnny, who also died in the crash, loved everything about cars and was shaping up to the next driver in the family.

"Johnny adored his father and loved everything about cars," he said.

Grist added that although McRae took risks while competing, he was an extremely conscientious helicopter pilot.

David Richards, 55, Colin's former boss at Subaru, was yesterday also in a helicopter crash.
Hours after expressing condolences for the McRaes, he and his wife walked away from the wreckage near North Weald airfield, Essex. David said: "We heard this bang at the back. I managed to bring it down and it fell on its side. Sometimes you're lucky. It's very sad that Colin was not."