Man, 59, Dies After Salford Plane Crash

Residents of a quiet Salford suburb had a lucky escape when a light aircraft crashed into two houses, badly injuring the pilot and his passenger but causing no other injuries.


The plane came down within quarter of a mile of one of northern England's busiest motorways, the M62, at Peel Green, Greater Manchester.


A fleet of emergency vehicles cordoned off Newlands Avenue, where debris was scattered around the houses on the approach to Barton airfield, a centre for light aircraft and club flying.


Local residents said the top floors of the two houses were demolished when the plane slewed over them, after which it crashed with a noise like an explosion. Ambulance staff evacuated shaken but unhurt residents from at least one of the properties.


The two men on board the aircraft suffered serious burns and were taken to Wythenshawe hospital by air ambulance. A spokeswoman for the ambulance service said: "A man in his late 50s had 70% burns and a man aged 21 had 60% burns. We have had no reports of other casualties."


Six hazardous area response vehicles were sent to seal off the scene with a rapid response car, two ambulances and six fire engines. The A57 from Salford to Liverpool has been closed in both directions, with diversions in place.


A spokesman for Greater Manchester police said: "Officers attended and discovered a light aircraft had come down and collided with two properties."


The crash site is 300 metres from the edge of Barton airfield, Manchester's original airport which served the city until 1938 when services transferred to the bigger site at Ringway. Barton was developed by a local flying enthusiast, John Leeming, celebrated for his landing in 1926 on the Lake District summit of Helvellyn, the third-highest mountain in England.


His 19-year-old co-passenger is said to still be in a critical condition following the incident on Friday, according to Greater Manchester Police.
They were the only two people in the aircraft and no one was home at the time of the crash.


Officers were called just after 12.20pm to Newlands Avenue, Eccles, which is located close to the Barton Aerodrome.
A cordon remained at the scene on Friday night as structural engineers assessed the damage. The families affected were given alternative accommodation.
The fire service said the crash had caused structural damage to one of the houses, but there was no longer a risk from leaking fuel.
Part of one of the buildings may have to be demolished.