Birmingham crash: All five thought dead
It is now thought that all five people aboard a Challenger aircraft which crashed at Birmingham airport were killed.
The British Department of Transport said that members of the Air Accidents Investigation Branch were on their way to the crash scene.
‘‘There will be full investigation followed by an AAIB report in due course,’’ said a department spokesman.
The Canadian-built Challenger aircraft in today’s crash was part of a family of executive jets that have proved both popular and successful.
Capable of a range of 4,300 miles, the twin-engined Challenger 604, which can carry around 20 people, has a particularly wide body for a jet of its kind.
This has made it particularly appealing to companies who want to transport a number of board members around, rather than just the chairman or the chief executive.
The Challenger is built by Canadair, a subsidiary of giant Canadian transport company Bombardier, which is also the parent company of Northern Ireland plane-making company Shorts.
Produced in Montreal, the Challenger is powered by CF34 engines made by America’s General Electric company.
Although only a handful of Challengers are UK-owned, the plane has proved immensely popular in North America.
The first model, the Challenger 600, made its debut in the early 1980s and was followed by the 601 model which was made until 1996, when the 604 went into production.
More than 180 of the 604 models have been sold, while 82 of the 600 series and 257 of the 601 series were purchased.
