Southend-on-Sea, mid-afternoon one hot Sunday in July, and a scheduled medical flight is preparing to depart. The small Dutch aircraft is returning to Lelystad, Netherlands, where the plane is based, having made recent visits to Croatia and Greece.
The four passengers on board are on their last leg home, having dropped their patient, and at 3.48pm are airborne – when calamity strikes. Just as the plane lifted into the Essex sky, it is seen to bank steeply to the left. The plane “almost seemed to invert and unfortunately crashed,” said an eyewitness. “There was a large fireball.”
The Beech B200 Super King Air never even got beyond the airfield perimeter.
Fire crews scrambled and authorities moved to their response actions. London Southend is closed – procedural in such a tragedy. This because all available fire appliances are involved, and, with the crash site visible from aircraft and terminal buildings, some respect for the unknowns.
Despite the airport’s grand title, it is small: holiday charters, business transport and other moderate operators, such as EasyJet – among airlines soon diverting flights. The airport is ideal for medical evacuations.
Zeusch Aviation expressed condolences, as it confirmed its flight had been “involved in an accident” and that they are “actively supporting the authorities with the investigation”. Thereafter details remained slow and sketchy. The number on board wasn’t even confirmed later that day. This aircraft could seat 20.
What on earth (or just meters above it) had happened to flight SUZ1…? A question as much for the emergency response, as for any eyewitness.
24 hours is a leveller when responding to a grim aviation accident. For the communications, that is. Afterall, it was a sleepy Sunday afternoon. Although not for long.
With the head-scratching, uniformed services and aviation experts are about the place within minutes. The UK Air Accident and Investigation Branch (AAIB), notified at 16.11, is soon on the ground and their grim work continues while daylight remains.
It would be later the next day when we would learn more. And a news presser is the done thing at any UK airport, in front of the terminal building; microphones and cameras anticipate officials: Essex Police, airport operator and AAIB (The Sun post – see 9 minutes in). But it is a lesson well-noted that mics are live while they wait.
Three spokespeople… three text book examples:
The plane crashed at the airport boundary shortly after take-off after “getting into difficulty”, Chief Superintendent Morgan Cronin said.
“Sadly we can now confirm that four people on board died. We our working to officially confirm their identities. At this stage we believe all four are foreign nationals.” The police chief continued, also with condolences, adding: “I can promise that those who have passed away will be treated with the utmost care and dignity.”
“We are speaking with dozens of witnesses and some have given valuable video evidence.
“I know there will be a lot of questions about what happened here yesterday. We are working as hard as we can to establish the facts and get those answers.”
The airport’s CEO, Jude Winstanley thinks of impacted families and his local community:
“On behalf of everyone at London Southend Airport, I would like to offer our sincere condolences to the families and friends of those lost in yesterday’s tragic incident.
“Our staff are working closely with the emergency services and air accident investigators to support their work. I would like to thank them for all of their hard work during this period.
“We are in constant dialog with our operating airlines, and as I’m sure everyone will understand, the airport will remain closed until further notice. Passengers should contact their airline for information and advice.”
Lisa Fitzsimons, Principle Inspector, Air Accidents Branch, explains their central role and immediately deploying a team that are highly qualified, including expertise in engineering, aircraft ops, human factors and recorded data.
“We have launched a safety investigation that will establish the causes of this tragic accident. Our investigation is in parallel with the investigation by Essex Police. If there are lessons to be learnt, we will make recommendations that aim to prevent a similar accident occurring.
“At this stage it is too early to speculate on what may have caused this accident.”
They take no questions, because they haven’t the answers – the point well made in the police statement.
A press conference, with officials still grappling with many unknowns, ensures the public is informed of what is going on now, who is involved and that they are the experts. People – air passengers at least – need that reassurance through a show of cooperation and collaboration. It is the best response counted on when a horrible thing happens.
