Light aircraft crash hits Britain's rail services

A light aircraft crashed yesterday near a main railway line in Staffordshire, killing at least one person and disrupting national train services, emergency services said.

The crash near Little Haywood just before midday brought down overhead rail power cables and left debris near tracks, said Network Rail.

A West Midlands Ambulance Service spokesman told the BBC that at least one person had been killed in the crash.

Staffordshire Police said it was possible two people had died but this was not yet confirmed.

The rail line, used by trains running between London and Manchester, Liverpool and Glasgow, was closed after the crash.

Virgin Trains said they were diverting affected trains onto an alternative route, adding around an hour to journeys. All rail services between Rugby and Stafford were suspended.