Bin Laden family 'on Blackbushe Airport crash plane'

Family members of Osama Bin Laden were on board a plane which crashed in Hampshire, the Saudi Arabian embassy in the UK has said.

The private jet crashed near Blackbushe Airport, Yateley, on Friday.

In a statement on Twitter, the Saudi ambassador to the UK, Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf Al Saud, offered condolences to the Bin Laden family.

The embassy said it was working with the British authorities to investigate the incident.

The statement said: "His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf Al Saud... has paid his condolences to the family and relatives of Mohammed bin Laden at Blackbushe airport in Britain for the great loss they have suffered as a result of the crash of the plane that was carrying the family."

The embassy added that it was working with the British authorities to ensure the speedy handover of the bodies for funerals and burials in Saudi Arabia.

The plane - an Embraer Phenom 300 - is reported to have belonged to an aviation firm owned by the Saudi-based family of the former al-Qaeda leader.

The plane, which was arriving from Milan, Italy, crashed into a British Car Auctions site at the airfield shortly after 15:00 BST, exploding on impact.

Its pilot and all three passengers were killed but no-one on the ground was injured, Hampshire Constabulary said.

The crash happened on the border between Hampshire and Surrey. Photo taken from BBC Online.

In a statement, Blackbushe Airport said the jet had crashed near the end of the runway while attempting to make a landing.

A spokeswoman for Milan Malpensa Airport confirmed the plane had left at 13:30 BST on its way to Hampshire.

The Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation tweeted that the plane was a Saudi-registered private aircraft, and said it would support the UK's Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) in its investigation.

Hampshire police are carrying out a joint investigation with the AAIB.

The Bin Laden family tree

- Osama Bin Laden's father Mohammed was originally from Yemen and moved to Saudi Arabia in the 1910s

- He became the head of a construction empire that is behind some of the biggest building projects in Saudi Arabia

- Mohammed Bin Laden had many wives, and is estimated to have had at least 50 children

- His eldest son, Salem Bin Laden, died in a plane crash in Texas in 1988

- The Bin Laden family - many of whom live in the US - severed ties with Osama before disowning him after the 11 September attacks

This Embraer Phenom 300 took off from Milan at 13:20 BST before crashing in Hampshire. Photo taken from BBC Online.

What is a Phenom 300?

-  Light jet aircraft made by Brazilian manufacturer Embraer

-  Standard models of the plane can hold eight occupants, including those in the cockpit

-  Its wingspan is 15.91m (52ft 2in), and length is 15.64m (51ft 4in)

-  Can reach 453 knots on high-speed cruise mode

-  Has a maximum altitude of 45,000ft (13,716m)