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Seven dead in Sussex as airshow plane crashes onto road

Seven people are dead and 14 injured after a plane crashed during an airshow in Shoreham-By Sea, ...
Newstalk
Newstalk

15.09 22 Aug 2015


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Seven dead in Sussex as airsho...

Seven dead in Sussex as airshow plane crashes onto road

Newstalk
Newstalk

15.09 22 Aug 2015


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Seven people are dead and 14 injured after a plane crashed during an airshow in Shoreham-By Sea, West Sussex, hitting cars as it came down on a busy road.

One person remains in a critical condition at Royal Sussex County Hospital.

Superintendent Jane Derrick from Sussex Police say more bodies may be found:

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The plane, believed to be a Hawker Hunter, hit several cars on the A27 at about 1.20pm.

The plane ended up in a bush, according to a spokesman for the airshow, but there were reports the pilot managed to escape before the crash.

British Prime Minister David Cameron has offered his condolences to the families of the victims, while organisers have cancelled the remainder of the event.

Laura Raymond from Splash FM was watching and commentating the display and said: "Within seconds we were thinking 'gosh that plane was going rather low'.

"There was a ball of fire, we didn’t even hear an impact - and then plumes of black smoke. It's being described by the commentator as a tragic incident."

She said around 20,000 people were at the show and were now "in hushed silence", adding that the planes don't fly over crowds "but obviously everyone's in shock."

"It went up in a ball of flames. All we can do is pray the pilot has been brought out of the plane. From my limited knowledge there won't have been time to eject."

Witness Jason Dwarika said: "(The pilot) was just coming down to do a manoeuvre but he just didn't come out of the trees."

A spokesman for Sussex Police said they were "aware" of the crash and were "dealing" with it and an Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) spokesman said a team would be deployed to look into what had happened.

The Hawker Hunter was introduced in the 1950s and retired from military service in 2014.


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