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Five killed as two planes collide Five killed as two planes collide
(about 1 hour later)
Five people have been killed in a mid-air collision between two light aircraft in Warwickshire.Five people have been killed in a mid-air collision between two light aircraft in Warwickshire.
One plane came down close to Coombe Abbey, near Brinklow, three miles from Coventry Airport at 1140 BST, West Midlands Ambulance Service said. The pilot of one plane, described as a microlight, crashed into a field close to Coombe Abbey, Brinklow, near Coventry Airport at around 1130BST.
The second aircraft crashed in nearby Brandon Woods. A second Cessna carrying four people came down a mile away in Brandon Woods.
Eyewitness Malcolm Collins told the BBC how "the smaller plane disintegrated immediately, and the right engine of the twin aircraft blew up". Police believe the planes were returning to Coventry airport when the incident happened and the bodies of the victims are still being recovered.
One person in the first plane and four people in the second aircraft - all adults - were confirmed dead at the scene. Their identities have not yet been revealed. Det Supt Adrian MacGee said: "How they collided and how they came to the collision we still do not know."
Warwickshire police confirmed a Cessna 402 was one of the planes involved and possibly a micro-light and appealed for any witnesses to the crash to come forward. The first aircraft landed in a field near Coventry Road, between Brinklow and Coventry. The Cessna aircraft was owned by Reconnaissance Ventures Ltd, which is based at Coventry Airport.
The debris from the aircraft "stretches across several miles", a spokesman said. Debris from the collision stretched across several miles. No-one on the ground was reported injured.
'Small community' Commander Mick Leach of Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service said: "At the moment our thoughts are really on getting the task done. Clearly there are a lot of people who are going to get some very distressing news. Our priority is that we can retrieve the bodies as quickly as possible and that those relatives can be notified and can have time and privacy to mourn their loss."
Det Supt Adrian MacGee confirmed both aircraft had flown out of Coventry Airport and it was believed were on their way back to the site when the crash occured. Murray MacGregor, spokesman for West Midlands Ambulance Service, said crews had found "a scene of devastation" and air accident investigators have launched an inquiry.
"How they collided and how they came to the collision we still do not know," he said. Witness Malcolm Collins says the accident happened in open skies
Air accident investigators and the emergency services are at the scene but the bodies have not yet been recovered. "Thankfully nobody was nearby when the debris came down," he said.
Eyewitness Malcolm Collins, from Daventry, Northamptonshire, was at Coombe Abbey children's playground with his family when the collision occurred.
"We noticed the twin-engined aircraft coming over the top of us. It was about 300 metres away from us, flying away from us as we watched it, and it struck another aircraft that had been coming across. As it hit it, the smaller aircraft just completely disintegrated."
Paul Harwood, head of human resources at Coventry Airport, told BBC News he knew those who died in the crash.Paul Harwood, head of human resources at Coventry Airport, told BBC News he knew those who died in the crash.
"They are known to us all. They've been around for some time, most of us have been around for some time," he said."They are known to us all. They've been around for some time, most of us have been around for some time," he said.
"It is a small community, and our sympathies don't just go out to our families, it's all those who are affected by today.""It is a small community, and our sympathies don't just go out to our families, it's all those who are affected by today."
Witness Malcolm Collins says the accident happened in open skies
Murray MacGregor, spokesman for West Midlands Ambulance Service, said crews had found "a scene of devastation".
"Thankfully nobody was nearby when the debris came down," he said.
He added that the planes had crashed down about a mile apart and that an air ambulance was needed to help locate the wreckage in the wooded area.
Mr Collins, from Daventry, Northamptonshire, was at Coombe Abbey children's playground with his family and said the crash happened about 400m in front of him.
"The twin engined aircraft was on quite a low approach to Coventry, on the normal land path, when a smaller aircraft came from the right and the twin-engined aircraft struck it side on, the smaller plane disintegrated immediately, and the right engine of the twin aircraft blew up," he said.
"Whilst we watched the twin-engined aircraft bank steeply to the left, with smoke coming from its right engine, it seemed to level off and climb slightly, before dropping steeply down to the left," he added.
Mr MacGregor said: "On arrival at the scene they found both aircraft had crashed. One had gone down in Brandon Woods.
'Grim task'
"Unfortunately there were four people confirmed dead in the wreckage of that aircraft," he said.
"The second aircraft landed in a field near Coventry Road, between Brinklow and Coventry, and sadly one person was confirmed dead at that aircraft crash site.
"Sadly there was nothing that could be done other than the grim task of confirming the deaths of the five people."
He said the weather conditions at the time of the crash would be one factor looked at by air accident investigators.
Warwickshire Police said it was working jointly with the fire service and Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) to investigate the collision.
Mick Leach, incident support commander for Warwickshire fire service, said specialist teams were working at the site and that specialist fire crews from the West Midlands had been brought in to assist with specialist lifting and cutting equipment.
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