Flights cancelled after airport plane incident

Harriet HeywoodBBC Information, EssexSmoke rises at Southend Airport after the airplane crashAn plane has crashed at London Southend Airport. Essex Police mentioned it was alerted to a 12-metre airplane on fireplace on the website in Southend-on-Sea shortly earlier than 16:00 BST on Sunday. John Johnson, 40, from Billericay, Essex, was watching planes together with his spouse and kids when he noticed a “big fireball”.The airport confirmed there had been a “critical incident” and the 4 flights scheduled to go away on Sunday had been cancelled. The airport added it will present extra data “as quickly as doable”.Frazer BrooksThe East of England Ambulance Service and Essex County Fireplace and Rescue Service attended the sceneMr Johnson was on the airport together with his spouse and kids to look at plane exercise as “my sons are actually into planes”.His household waved on the pilots of the plane earlier than it went down, he mentioned. “You may see [the pilots] smiling and all of us sort of smiled again, the plane then turned 180 levels to face its take off level, powered up its engines and powered previous us, carrying on down the runway,” he instructed the BBC.”It took off in in all probability three or 4 seconds. It began to financial institution closely to its left. “I mentioned to my spouse, that is uncommon. We do not discover plane usually turning at that stage of their ascent.”Inside just a few seconds of that, the plane nearly inverted and hit the bottom. There was an enormous fireball.”He referred to as 999 to report the incident.’Operating in direction of it’Nick Hull/BBCJames Philpot was bartending on the Rochford Hundred Golf Membership on the time of the crashJames Philpott, a bartender on the Rochford Hundred Golf Membership, had been in a hut in the midst of the course when he felt “a giant heatwave”.”I seemed up and there was a large fireball, principally,” he mentioned.”Everybody was simply fairly shocked… we’ve not seen something like this.”Folks had been form of working in direction of it to see if anybody was injured.”Folks had been evacuated from the course as a consequence of its shut proximity with the crash, however Mr Philpott mentioned some folks remained within the clubhouse because it was additional away.The chairman of Westcliff Rugby Membership, which is close to Southend Airport, mentioned folks at their membership didn’t find yourself having to evacuate following the airplane crash.Pete Jones mentioned: “That did not occur ultimately [police] modified their thoughts.”We have got a giant occasion there, 250 folks, they usually simply mentioned no, you do not have to evacuate.”Mr Jones mentioned the plane went down about 1,000m from the clubhouse and that individuals there might see smoke within the aftermath. ContributedFollowing the crash all flights from Southend Airport have been cancelled A spokesperson for Essex Police mentioned: “We’re working with all emergency companies on the scene now and that work might be ongoing for a number of hours.”We might please ask the general public to keep away from this space the place doable whereas this work continues.”Essex County Fireplace and Rescue Service mentioned it was referred to as to the incident at 15:58 and has requested folks to keep away from the realm if doable.A spokesperson mentioned: “Crews from Southend (two), Rayleigh Weir and Basildon (two), together with off-road autos from Billericay and Chelmsford attended.”We’re persevering with to work on the scene with our emergency companies and aviation companions.”Nick Hull/BBCThe East of England Ambulance Service mentioned 4 crews had been on the scene together with a speedy response automobile, a hazardous space response automobile and a senior paramedicThe Transport Secretary mentioned her “ideas are with all these concerned” within the Southend Airport crash and that she was receiving “common updates”.In a submit on X, Heidi Alexander mentioned: “I am conscious of the tragic incident at Southend Airport this afternoon.”My ideas are with all these concerned.”The emergency companies are on scene and are advising the general public to keep away from the realm the place doable.”I’m monitoring the state of affairs carefully and receiving common updates.” Earlier within the night the Labour MP for Southend West and Leigh and the Southend Metropolis Council’s cupboard member for enterprise, tradition, music and tourism, mentioned they’d been made conscious of the incident.David Burton-Sampson and Matt Dent posted on X that their ideas had been with these concerned and with the emergency companies responding to the incident.