'We believe that the group were just returning from a visit to the
nearby village of Quarter at around 1605 (1505 GMT) hours yesterday,
when it appears that the helicopter got into difficulty and crashed
within the grounds of Mr McRae's family home,' Chief Superintendent Tim
Love said in a statement issued by Strathclyde Police.


'Our officers are working closely with the Air Accident Investigation
Team who are presently at the scene. Family liaison officers have been
appointed and are with the families to help them through this
distressing and difficult time.'


The two others were named as six-year-old Ben Porcelli, of Lanark, and
Graeme Duncan, 37, who lived in France. A police spokeswoman stressed
that the bodies had not yet been formally identified.


The crash wreckage, which was in thick woods, was so bad that it was
initially difficult to determine how many people were involved.


Colin Steele McRae, a licensed pilot, was born in Lanark on August 5,
1968. He had two children, Hollie and Johnny, with his wife Alison.


Nicky Grist, McRae's co-driver since 1997, expressed his sorrow. 'He
was such a great character and will be sorely missed,' he told Sky
News, adding that the death of Johnny and the two friends made it an
even greater tragedy. 'Johnny adored his father and loved everything
about cars,' Grist said. 'I am sure he was the new rally driver for the
McRae family.'


David Richards, Prodrive chief executive and McRae's former boss at Subaru–where he enjoyed much of
his rallying success–described his death as 'A terrible loss. He had a
competitive spirit like I've never seen,' Richards told the BBC. 'He
was one of those people who had an extraordinary spirit that you just
can't define.'

Eerily, Richards was also involved in a separate helicopter accident when returning from the Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday. Both Richards and his wife Karen walked away unharmed from the scene near North Weald Airfield in Essex. The pair were returning home early after learning of McRae's accident and suffered transmission problems, causing them to crash land.

Scotland's First Minister, Alex Salmond, said McRae's death was a
'Great tragedy. Colin McRae was an outstanding Scottish sportsman of
international stature and achievement.'


McRae competed in his first rally on the World Rally Championship
circuit in Sweden in 1987, earning his first win in New Zealand in
1993. Driving a Subaru Impreza 555, the Scot won the 1995 World Rally
Championship in a nail-biting finish on home soil and was the runner-up
in 1996, 1997 and 2001. He was made an MBE by the Queen in 1996. The
driving legend is also known for Colin McRae Rally–a series of racing video games, played on many platforms, which have sold more than eight million copies worldwide.


The rally driver's official website was changed to a black screen on Sunday morning, prior to police confirmation of his death.


'I'm not really a fan of computers,' McRae was quoted as saying on his
website before it went offline. He added 'When it comes to computers
and electronics, give me 300 brake horsepower, a winding road and no
brakes, and then you've got my attention!'