Small business jet travelling from England crashes in Germany killing four

The aircraft, which came down ablaze after hitting an electricity pylon, appears to have been a Cessna Citation business jet, police said

Firefighters inspect the burnt-out wreckage of the twin-engine business jet on the premises of a landfill site in western Germany (AP)

Four people are believed to have died when a small jet which had set off from Britain crashed near an airfield in western Germany today.

The two pilots and two passengers were all German, a spokesman for the local airport said.

The plane came down Sunday lunchtime at a landfill site near the city of Trier.

The aircraft appears to have been a Cessna Citation business jet carrying two pilots and two passengers from England to an airfield at Foehren, near the crash site, city police said in a statement.

A spokesman for Trier-Fohren airfield said the plane was travelling from Shoreham airport in West Sussex.

There was no immediate word on a possible cause for the crash, but conditions are said to have been very foggy and the aircraft had damaged an electricity pylon before hitting the ground.

The plane was ablaze when firefighters arrived at the scene.