Everything we know about Southend Airport crash

A small plane crashed in a "fireball" shortly before 4pm at London Southend Airport on Sunday, prompting a huge emergency response. The Essex airport remains closed until further notice and passengers due to travel on Monday are being advised to contact their airline.

Essex Police said they were called to the airport after "reports of a collision involving one 12-metre plane" at the airport. It's not clear how many people were on board the plane and there has been no confirmation on the number of casualties but police described it as a "serious incident". Images posted on social media showed a plume of fire and black smoke coming up from the crash site, while witnesses described seeing a "fireball".

Zeusch Aviation, based at Lelystad Airport in The Netherlands, confirmed its SUZ1 flight had been "involved in an accident" at London Southend Airport.

In a statement, the company said it was "actively supporting the authorities with the investigation".

"Our thoughts are with everyone who has been affected," it added.

According to flight tracking data, the aircraft involved in the crash was a Beech B200 Super King Air.

The twin-engine plane was equipped with medical systems for transporting patients. Zeusch Aviation specialises in medical evacuation services and transplant flights but also runs private charters.

It's not clear whether the flight being operated was a medical evacuation - or whether any patient was onboard at the time of the crash.

The cause of the crash is not known yet.

The plane had flown from the Greek capital Athens to Pula, Croatia, before heading to Southend.

The aircraft was due to return to Lelystad, Netherlands on Sunday evening.

In its most recent update, Essex Police said: "All emergency services attended the scene of an incident involving one plane at about 4pm, shortly after the plane had taken off.

"Flights at the airport were quickly grounded to ensure work could immediately begin on extinguishing the flames as quickly as possible."

On Sunday evening, the force asked the public to avoid the area, with emergency services expected to be at the site overnight and this morning.

Fire crews from Southend, Rayleigh Weir and Basildon, along with off road vehicles from Billericay and Chelmsford attended the incident.

An air ambulance, four ambulances, a rapid response vehicle, four hazardous area response teams and three senior paramedic cars were also dispatched to the scene.

Essex Police have set up a dedicated public portal where people can contact them about the crash at: https://esxpol.uk/LIbaz.

Southend Airport on Sunday announced it was closed until further notice, with all flights to and from it cancelled.

Passengers due to fly today have been advised to speak to their airline.

The airport said it will "restart flight operations as soon as possible".

"Our thoughts are with those affected by today's events and all passengers impacted by this disruption," it said on Sunday.

Southend Airport said the incident involved a "general aviation aircraft" and the airport was "working closely with the local authorities".

John Johnson, who was at Southend Airport with his children and wife on Sunday, said they saw a "big fireball" after the plane crashed "head first into the ground".

He said: "We all waved at the pilots, and they all waved back at us.

"The aircraft then turned 180 degrees to face its take-off, departure, powered up, rolled down the runway.

"It took off and about three or four seconds after taking off, it started to bank heavily to its left, and then within a few seconds of that happening, it more or less inverted and crashed just head first into the ground.

"There was a big fireball. Obviously, everybody was in shock in terms of witnessing it."

As a precaution, because of their proximity to the incident, police said they were evacuating the Rochford Hundred Golf Club and Westcliff Rugby Club but rugby club chairman Pete Jones said it had not been necessary.

A bartender at the golf club, which is next to the airport, told the BBC he felt a "big heat wave" before looking up to a "massive fireball" in the sky.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander described the incident as "tragic" and said she was "monitoring the situation and closely receiving regular updates".

"My thoughts are with all those involved," she said in a post on X on Sunday evening.

David Burton-Sampson, Labour MP for Southend West and Leigh, said he was aware of the incident.

He said: "Please keep away and allow the emergency services to do their work. My thoughts are with everyone involved."