One person killed after aircraft hits tree

A person was killed when a light aircraft crashed in a village and narrowly missed a row of houses, police said.

Emergency services were called to the scene at Aldham, near Hadleigh, Suffolk at about 11.20am yesterday after a member of the public called police reporting that a plane had crashed into a tree and then became submerged in a pond.

It is not clear whether there were any further casualties.

Dennis Hill, who owns a property near the crash site, said the plane narrowly missed his house and several others as it plunged to the ground.

He said: "The plane flew across the fields and into the tree, before falling into the pond. My sons went to investigate, but our property was not damaged and it crashed two or three properties up from ours."

Mr Hill, who runs the Rose and Crown Inn in nearby Elmsett, added: "I think the pilot died on impact. There's an airfield nearby, but he was way off track. It's like he was trying to land, but you've got fields and hedges in the way."

The crash occurred near Aldham Street, a short distance from Elmsett Airfield, and an area around the location was cordoned off. Air accident investigators and water rescue teams were also called to the scene.

An Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) spokesman said: "The AAIB is aware of the incident and has sent a team to investigate the light aircraft accident near Ipswich."

A spokeswoman for Suffolk Constabulary said the incident was ultimately an AAIB job, which will be dealing with the case as it develops.

PA