Five killed as plane crashes into houses

Two pilots and three passengers in a Cessna Citation 1 jet have been killed after it crashed into a housing estate in Farnborough, Kent. The plane had left London Biggin Hill Airport just after 2pm but apparently got engine trouble almost immediately after take-off.

All crashes are horrendous, but this one has left a memory on many eye witnesses. Because the plane was so low, one person could actually see the faces of the people in the plane. They lost their lives and it is only miraculous that there were no further victims on the ground. The house that took the direct hit was unoccupied at the time, as the owners were away.

Executive air travel is usually extremely safe, but the numbers of plane trips are increasing. Biggin Hill use to be a small airport where people learnt to fly and is famous for the Biggin Hill Air Fair. Now it is vying to become the executive's first choice for air travel from London. Is it wise to have such an airport so close to the suburban outreaches of London? This question has already been asked on TV tonight.



Probably we require a far more integrated approach to airport expansion and flight numbers. Currently it appears all too ad hoc.


BBC News report