Ditched in the Rape
YES, THERE REALLY WAS A LIGHT AIRCRAFT IN THE FIELD NEXT TO ADVENTURERS FARM, and no we are not seeking planning permission for a landing strip as has been rumoured!
As parents of a teenager hosting a birthday party at the farm for a friend last month James and I were on hand in case there were any "problems". We had covered use of the pool and bouncy castle by partygoers, all looking amazing in their fancy dress outfits, but had not anticipated a "gate crasher" from the skies. Hadn't done a risk assessment for that eventuality.
At just after 9pm Clive Riggs rushed up to the house, we mistakenly thought he might be about to "comment" about the music - but it was to inform us that a plane had crashed into the rape field the other side of the hedge to the party. Whilst most of the 80 or so revellers were blissfully unaware that the flight that had just flown over at a ridiculously low height above them had come to an abrupt stop, no less than three fire engines had been mobilised to attend the scene.
The pilot, who had taken off earlier in the evening from a small strip near Ely had reportedly got LOST and then run out of fuel. With the whole wide Fen to take his pick from to land he apparently circled several times perilously close to the pylons before deciding to crash over the nearest property. Luckily the pilot emerged unscathed, although somewhat shaken and a bit put out on being informed that his plane would remain in the field until the rape had been combined so as not to cause any further damage to the crop.
The rest of the evening went really well!!