Five dead in plane crash

Emergency services have recovered one body

Five people, including two pilots, have been killed when a light aircraft crashed into a Hampshire business park, setting a factory unit ablaze.

The Beech King Air 200 light aircraft, en route to Palma, Majorca, spiralled out of control shortly after taking off from Blackbushe airport in Yateley at about 1345GMT on Saturday.

The plane was the last aircraft to be allowed to leave the airport before it was closed due to thick fog.

The twin-engine plane was airborne for seconds before it spiralled into the factory unit belonging to rubber suppliers Linotex, on the Blackbushe Business Park, located about 200 yards from the end of the runway.

We couldn't approach the aircraft because it was on fire

Surrey Ambulance Service spokesman

Investigators have identified four of the dead, who are believed to be related.

Two are older men, and two others are a man and woman in their 20s. A second woman has not yet been identified.

Superintendent Ron Godden said their identities are unlikely to be released until the next of kin have been contacted.

Tangled wreckage

Assistant divisional officer Jerry Leonard said his officers had located bodies in the tangled burnt wreckage of the plane which lies about 15 metres inside the factory unit.

He said it was unlikely that any of the five occupants would have survived the crash as the plane was carrying 2,000 litres of aviation fuel.

There was something wrong with the engine, you could hear it

Witness Geoff Perry

"The aircraft has been very rapidly engulfed by the fire," he said.

"It's difficult to identify specific bodies because of the devastation or know the amount of people involved."

No one was inside the factory unit at the time of the crash.

Richard Horobin, of Hampshire police, told the BBC that the fire had been extiguished.

"Fire officers and police officers are sifting through the wreckage to try and establish exactly what happened."

Exclusion zone

A Surrey Ambulance Service crew were at the incident within a couple of minutes.

But a spokesman said they could not approach the aircraft because of fire.

"We have not removed anyone from the aircraft," he said.

Eye witness Geoff Perry, 42, owner of the Anchor Inn located behind Blackbushe Business Park, said the crash was pretty close.

"There was something wrong with the engine, you could hear it.

"There was a flash and a loud explosion, it was really loud. I could see a plume of black smoke."

Police have set up an exclusion zone around the site which is expected to cause delays to traffic on the A30 between the B3016 and A327 Eversely turnings.

Experts are still unsure about the cause of the crash and the Air Accidents Investigation Branch are expected to examine the wreckage.