London's Southend Airport cancels all flights after small plane crashes after takeoff

A small plane has crashed after take-off at Southend Airport in London, sending a fireball into the sky. Emergency services are currently present at the scene of the crash. In a statement on social media, the airport confirmed a “serious incident” involving what it termed a general aviation aircraft.

All flights scheduled to leave the airport for the remainder of today have been cancelled after the crash, as per a Sky News report.

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Witness John Johnson, who was at the airport with his family, said he saw a “big fireball” after the plane “crashed head first into the ground.”

“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," he said. “There was a big fireball."

Johnson said that before the plane got into position for take-off, he and his family waved at the pilots and “they all waved back at us.”

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Essex Police said it had been alerted just before 4 p.m. local time to the “serious incident" at the relatively small airport, which is around 45 miles (72 kilometers) east of the capital.

Images posted on social media show a plume of fire and black smoke emanating from the crash site. The plane involved is said to be 12 meters (39 feet) long. No details on how many people were on board were immediately disclosed.“We are working with all emergency services at the scene now and that work will be ongoing for several hours," Essex Police said.

As a precaution due to their proximity to the incident, police evacuated a local golf club and rugby club.

The local member of parliament, David Burton-Sampson, urged people to stay away and let the emergency services do their work.

“My thoughts are with everyone involved," he said.