How small plane crashed at London Southend Airport seconds after takeoff

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A Beechcraft King Air B200 aircraft crashed at London Southend Airport shortly after takeoff on Sunday, just before 8.30 pm IST. Witnesses reported the 12-metre plane turned into a 'huge fireball', with visuals showing black smoke billowing from the site. The plane reportedly inverted mid-air before coming down read more
A plume of black smoke rises from an area near the runway after a small plane crash, as seen from inside a building at London Southend Airport, in Southend, Britain, July 13, 2025, in this screen grab obtained from a social media video. @agussromagnoli via X/via Reuters
A small plane crashed at London Southend Airport on Sunday (July 13) shortly after take-off. Visuals showed black smoke billowing from the Beechcraft King Air B200 aircraft after the mishap.
London Southend Airport confirmed a 'serious incident' involving a general aviation aircraft. Witnesses have reported seeing a 'huge fireball' emerging from the crash site.
Let's take a closer look.
What happened?
A 12-metre plane with two pilots onboard crashed at London Southend Airport. Emergency services, including the police, fire service and ambulance service, rushed to the site.
Essex Police said they were 'alerted' about 'reports of a collision' involving the small Beech B200 aircraft at the site in Southend-on-Sea shortly before 8.30 pm IST.
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'We are working with all emergency services at the scene now, and that work will be ongoing for several hours. We would like to ask the public to avoid this area where possible while this work continues,' it said in a statement.
As per the flight-tracking service Flightradar, the aircraft took off from Southend Airport at 8:18 pm IST and was headed to Lelystad, a city in the Netherlands.
Earlier on Sunday, the plane flew from Athens to the Pula airport in Croatia, before making the three-hour flight to London Southend, reported Independent.
After the crash, London Southend Airport closed operations until further notice. It said it will inform the public of any updates and those set to travel on Monday should contact their airline.
As per the airport's website, five international flights had been cancelled after the accident.
Dutch company Zeusch Aviation confirmed its SUZ1 flight had been 'involved in an accident' at London Southend Airport. The company said they were 'actively' supporting authorities with the investigation, adding: 'Our thoughts are with everyone who has been affected.'
Besides the two pilots, it remains unclear how many people were on the plane. The cause of the crash is also not known yet.
David Burton-Sampson, MP for Southend West & Leigh, wrote on X: 'I am aware of an incident at Southend Airport. Please keep away and allow the emergency services to do their work. My thoughts are with everyone involved.'
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United Kingdom Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said: 'I'm aware of the tragic incident at Southend Airport this afternoon. My thoughts are with all those involved.
'The emergency services are on scene and are advising the public to avoid the area where possible. I am monitoring the situation closely and receiving regular updates.'
I'm aware of the tragic incident at Southend Airport this afternoon. My thoughts are with all those involved.
The emergency services are on scene and are advising the public to avoid the area where possible.
I am monitoring the situation closely and receiving regular updates. — Heidi Alexander MP (@Heidi_Labour) July 13, 2025
Witnesses describe London plane crash
Witnesses told British media that the plane crashed 'head first into the ground'.
John Johnson, who was watching planes with his wife and children at the airport, told BBC he saw a 'huge fireball'.
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'You could see [the pilots] smiling and we all kind of smiled back, the aircraft then turned 180 degrees to face its take off point, powered up its engines and powered past us, carrying on down the runway,' he said.
'It took off in probably three or four seconds. It started to bank heavily to its left. I said to my wife, that's unusual. We don't find aircraft normally turning at that stage in their ascent.
'Within a few seconds of that, the aircraft almost inverted and hit the ground. There was a huge fireball.'
According to Johnson, the airport's fire service responded immediately after the crash, with two fire engines reaching the spot.
They were followed by local police, ambulance and fire services.
Speaking to Metro, a woman said she was watching planes departing with her daughter from a viewing deck at the Holiday Inn on Sunday.
'It was honestly a surreal experience. The plane took off, then around 50 meters it sort of kicked to the left, then around 100 meters it abruptly banked to the left. With that, it basically descended down headfirst and just burst into flames as it hit the ground. We can't believe what we have seen.
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'It didn't look like there was time to bail out. Luckily, I think my daughter is too young to know what really happened. I feel for the other kids who were there and witnessed it too. It felt like we were in a bad dream.'
James Philpott, a bartender at the golf club next to the airport, told BBC that he felt 'a big heatwave' before looking up to a 'massive fireball' in the sky.
'Everyone was just quite shocked… we haven't seen anything like this. People were sort of running towards it to see if anyone was injured.'
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What we know about the crashed plane
The plane involved in the crash at Southend Airport was reportedly a Beech B200 Super King Air, a US-built aircraft with a jet turbine, according to flight tracking data.
It is a small plane capable of carrying more than 20 people for short-haul charter flights.
The aircraft was a medical transport jet equipped with medical systems for transporting patients, reported The Mirror.
However, as per the Independent report, the ill-fated plane was a luxury private aeroplane with eight seats and a comfortable leather interior.
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According to BBC correspondent Tom Symonds: 'This sort of aircraft is a bit like a Land Rover of the skies. It's a bit like an all-purpose vehicle and we can see that it has been rented out for roles including medical evacuation, moving transplant material, aerial mapping, that sort of thing.'
Zeusch Aviation, which operated the plane, specialises in medical evacuation services and transplant flights as well as private charters.
Meanwhile, Essex Police said it was working with the Air Accident Investigation Branch. Chief Superintendent Morgan Cronin said: 'In these very early stages it is vital we gather the information we need, and continue supporting the people of Essex.'
With inputs from agencies