A FATHER died in an horrific minibus crash after a dream holiday to Egypt.

Holmfirth company director Ian Bennett died after the minibus he was travelling in overturned as he and wife Carol were being driven to the airport to fly home.

They had just enjoyed a scuba diving holiday in Dahab when tragedy struck on March 31, last year.

At an inquest into the death of Mr Bennett at Huddersfield Coroner’s Court yesterday, a report by the Egyptian driver said he was driving at only 40km (24mph).

But that was dismissed by Huddersfield coroner Roger Whittaker, who said the driver was going at speeds of up to 100km (60mph) on a stoney road.

Mr Whittaker also said claims by the Egyptian tour guide that the crash was “fate” and could not have been prevented were “ludicrous”.

Mr Whittaker said: “To suggest that it is fatalism is, in my view, ludicrous. They could have taken care when they hit the stoney road.

“It seems to me that it’s more likely to have been 100km, as the lower speed limit would have been safe.”

Mr Bennett, director of Greys Artstone Ltd in Brockholes, was killed when the minibus overturned on the road between Dahab and Sharm El Sheikh.

Driver Hamidi Mohammed Salied Ahmed Meshgel had picked up Mr and Mrs Bennett and an Irish couple just 30 minutes earlier.

They were travelling along the main road from Dahab to the airport when the bus hit a stone and shale road surface.

Fellow passengers said the driver has previously taken bends “at speed”.

But it was to have fatal consequences when he lost control.

The minibus flipped over several times before coming to a rest down an incline.

Mr Bennett was killed while his wife and the other couple received minor injuries.

Mrs Bennett said: “About half an hour into the journey I heard Ian say “here we go”.

“I looked up and saw the bus driver swerve side to side. The bus then seemed to turn back on itself and began rolling over and over, down an incline.”

Once they were pulled from the wreckage Mrs Bennett, a nurse, began CPR but sadly her husband had died in the crash.

A fellow passenger said there was a second vehicle nearby which looked as if it had recently crashed at the same point, indicating the road was not safe and care should have been taken.

A report by the Internal Ministry and stamped by the Ministry of Justice in Egypt reveals the driver believed he could not have avoided the crash.

Tour guide Ibrahim Ali said the driver became surprised by the presence of stones and the vehicle could not be controlled.

Asked by the Egyptian investigator if he blamed the driver, Mr Ali said: “No, it was fate and fatalism.”

Mr Bennett, of Carr Green, Holmfirth, who had three daughters and one son, was not wearing a seatbelt and Mrs Bennett could not recall if the minibus was fitted with them.

A verdict of accidental death was recorded.