London Southend airport plane crash: 4 people killed, say police

The Beechcraft B200 Super King Air, operated by Dutch company Zeusch Aviation, had just taken off from Southend Airport when it crashed and burst into flames.

The plane had flown earlier on Sunday from Athens, Greece, to Pula, Croatia, before arriving at Southend. It was scheduled to return to Lelystad in the Netherlands that evening.

Witness John Johnson, who was at the airport with his family, described what he saw, “It took off and about three or four seconds later, it started to bank heavily to the left. Then within a few seconds, it almost flipped over and crashed head-first into the ground. There was a big fireball.”

Emergency services including airport fire crews, police, and ambulances quickly responded to the scene.

The crash happened just before 4 pm local time. Photos shared on social media and in British newspapers showed flames and thick black smoke rising from the crash site.

Police evacuated a nearby golf course and rugby club shortly after the crash as a safety measure.

Local MP David Burton-Sampson urged people to stay away from the area. “Please keep away and allow the emergency services to do their work,” he said on social media. “My thoughts are with everyone involved.”

According to the airport’s website, four scheduled flights were cancelled following the incident.