Witnesses described the incident as a "fireball" after a 12-metre plane caught fire on Sunday afternoon.

A plane crash at London Southend Airport has left the facility closed until further notice.

Witnesses described the incident as a "fireball" after a 12-metre plane caught fire on Sunday afternoon.

BBC reports that the London Southend Airport will remain closed until further notice after the crash, which witnesses described as a "fireball".

Essex Police confirmed they were alerted to the incident shortly before 16:00 BST.

"We are working to determine the circumstances surrounding the crash and are urging anyone with information to come forward," a police spokesperson said.

Dutch company Zeusch Aviation, which owns the plane, confirmed that its SUZ1 flight had been "involved in an accident" at the airport.

"Our thoughts are with everyone who has been affected, and we are actively supporting the authorities with the investigation," a company spokesperson said.

The plane had flown from Athens to Pula in Croatia before heading to Southend, with a planned return to Lelystad Airport. The number of casualties has not been confirmed, and authorities have yet to release further details on the incident.

The airport has advised passengers who are due to travel on Monday to contact their airline for updates.

"We will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available," the airport said in a statement.

The investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing, with authorities working to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.

BBC reports that John Johnson, 40, from Billericay, Essex, was watching planes with his wife and children when he saw a "huge fireball" after the plane crashed "head first into the ground".

Mr Johnson was at the airport with his wife and children to watch aircraft activity as he said his sons "are really into planes".

"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 told the BBC.

"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."

He called 999 to report the incident.

James Philpott, a bartender at the Rochford Hundred Golf Club, had been in a hut in the middle of the course when he felt "a big heatwave".

"I looked up and there was a massive fireball, basically," he told the BBC.

"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."

People were evacuated from the course due to its close proximity with the crash, but Mr Philpott said some people remained in the clubhouse as it was further away.

The chairman of Westcliff Rugby Club, which is near Southend Airport, said people at the club did not have to evacuate following the plane crash.

Pete Jones said: "That didn't happen in the end [police] changed their mind.

"We've got a big event there, 250 people, and they just said no, you don't have to evacuate."

Mr Jones said the aircraft went down about 1,000m from the clubhouse and that people there could see smoke in the aftermath.

Essex Police said it was working with the Air Accident Investigation Branch.

Ch Supt Morgan Cronin said: "In these very early stages it is vital we gather the information we need, and continue supporting the people of Essex."

The force asked people to keep its emergency lines open by using its dedicated major incident portal when contacting them about the incident.