Profiles: Kent jet crash victims

Five people were killed when a private jet crashed in Farnborough, Kent.

BBC News profiles the two pilots and three passengers who lost their lives in the accident.

DAVID LESLIE

Former racing driver David Leslie, 54, was best known for his nine wins in the British Touring Car Championship for Vauxhall, Honda and Nissan during the ultra-competitive Super Tourer era in the 1990s.

David Leslie had a successful career as a racing driver

Mr Leslie, who was born in Dumfriesshire, won five Scottish karting titles before graduating to car racing.

He began his racing career in single seaters and also had spells in F3, sports cars and Thunder Saloons in the 1980s.

He went on to drive in the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) from 1990 to 2003.

Bernard Buss, of the Scottish Motor Racing Club, paid tribute to Mr Leslie, saying: "David was very, very kind and a very good friend as far as I was concerned.

"He will be greatly missed by all the people involved in motor racing in Scotland.

"He was just one of the greatest lads and he helped so many of the young drivers today, such as David Coulthard. He helped them a lot in their formative years."

And Formula One legend Sir Jackie Stewart referred to Leslie's death as being "a great loss to Scottish motorsport".

He said: "David was a highly skilled and talented racing driver who was also an excellent engineer and technical expert within the sport.

"The Stewart family send deepest condolences and sincere sympathy to his family."

Mr Leslie leaves a wife, Jane, and two sons.

RICHARD LLOYD

Richard Lloyd, 63, was the boss of Apex Motorsport, and a former touring car champion.

Richard Lloyd, a former racing driver, leaves a wife and three daughters

Colin Hilton, chief executive of the Motor Sports Association - the governing body of UK motor sport - said Mr Lloyd was "well-regarded throughout the sport".

He said: "Having been a successful driver, it was as a team manager and owner that Richard really made his name, working with some of the best drivers in the world and winning numerous titles.

"But the pinnacle of his achievements surely came with the Le Mans-winning Bentley team in 2003, which was a great success for British motor sport."

Mr Lloyd's involvement with the BTCC dated back to the early 1970s, during which he achieved 12 race wins in Chevrolet Camaros.

He leaves a wife, Philippa, and three daughters.

MIKE ROBERTS

Eyewitnesses said pilot Mike Roberts made a desperate bid to try and avoid houses as the plane came down.

Mike Roberts, the pilot, has been hailed as a hero

There have been numerous tributes following his death.

A statement from Biggin Hill Airport described Mr Roberts as a "very experienced commercial pilot and a friend of many of us at the airport".

It read: "His cool judgment in managing the aircraft emergency and minimising loss of life on the ground is typical of such a remarkable man and he will be sorely missed."

These sentiments were echoed by Chief Superintendent Charles Griggs, Bromley Borough Commander for the Metropolitan Police. He said: "Everybody will see there were some heroic efforts to reduce the number of casualties".

Meanwhile, Douglas Field, 71, his friend of a decade, added: "We are all shocked by this because he was one of those outstanding figures, a tremendous person."

And Mike Wells, his business partner of 15 years, said his friend "would have done everything in his power to minimise the effects of this tragic incident on his colleagues, passengers and people on the ground.

"He will be sorely missed by everyone in the flying community at Biggin Hill and by his many friends worldwide."

MICHAEL CHAPMAN

Co-pilot Michael Chapman, 57, is understood to have begun flying in 1967 and spent several years as a flying instructor, before flying commercially with a number of UK airlines until last year.

Mr Chapman helped found a south coast flying company

He jointly owned a flying school based at Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, with his wife Kathy and their friends Neil and Lisa Westwood.

Mr Westwood said: "Mike Chapman was an incredibly popular and greatly respected man, with a very gentle manner and superb sense of humour.

"He was also a pilot of vast experience and exceptional ability. His tragic loss has not only sent shockwaves through the close-knit community at his home base of Shoreham Airport, but also throughout general and commercial aviation in the UK."

He said the volume of messages of condolence received since the accident "pay testament to Mike's incredible popularity and respect held for him amongst the aviation community", and his death "leaves a huge void in the lives of all those touched by his presence".

Shoreham Airport manager John Haffenden added: "Like most people in the world of aviation, he lived and breathed it. He was just a fantastic person."

Mr Chapman leaves his wife, a son and a daughter.

CHRISTOPHER ALLARTON

Christopher Allarton, 25, had graduated from Coventry University in motorsport engineering and was part way through his MSc when he took up a job at Apex with Richard Lloyd, who also died in the crash.

His father Richard, said his son was the "light of his life" and just starting out.

"He met a beautiful girl, finished university and got himself a great job. He was really excited about starting at Apex.

"He was just a young lad and over the moon to be involved in something like that," he said. At university, he was heavily involved in motorsport and had project managed the university's own car.

Principal lecturer Bernard Porter said: "Christopher was well liked and respected by the teaching staff and was extremely committed to his subject.

"He was very much a part of university life and helped out on open days telling other young people about the course and his enthusiasm for the subject was plain to see.

Formal identification of all five victims will not happen for some time.