UKIP's Farage 'luckiest man alive' after surviving election day plane crash

Blackleaf

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Britain getting its first hung parliament since 1974 and the unusualness of having a coalition government was not the only election day drama.

Former leader of the anti-EU United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP, or "you kip"), Nigel Farage, has said that he is the "luckiest man alive" after surviving a plane crash.

Farage, who was a candidate for the Buckingham seat, was in a light aircraft, along with just the pilot, which was trailing a banner which read "VOTE UKIP."

It is believed that the banner got tangled around the tail of the plane, meaning that a safe landing was difficult. The plane came down at Hinton-in-the-Hedges in Northamptonshire. Both Farage and the pilot knew for five minutes they were going to crash, and thought their time was up.

But, amazingly, both Farage and the pilot survived with just minor injuries. Farage sustained minor facial injuries and broken ribs and was treated at John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford - where Britain's Afghanistan war dead are taken after repatriation - after being transferred from Horton General Hospital, Banbury, Oxfordshire.

The crash happened at about 8.30am on Thursday, election day.

Farage was not able to get to the count in the Buckingham constituency during the election. He was trying to take the Buckingham seat off the Commons Speaker John Bercow. By convention, the three main parties - Tories, Labour and Liberal Democrats - do not allow any of their candidates to stand against the Speaker.

Bercow held the Buckingham seat, with the Independent candidate coming second and Farage third.

However, it was a good night for UKIP nationally. In terms of the overall vote (though not seats) they came fourth after the three main parties. Last year, they beat Labour into second place in the EU Elections, coming behind the Tories. It just shows what the British think of the EU.

Farage stood down as UKIP leader last year, with Lord Pearson taking his place, though he remains a member of the European Parliament.

UKIP's Farage 'luckiest man alive' after plane crash

Saturday, 8 May 2010
BBC News


The shaken former UKIP leader Nigel Farage is pulled from the wreckage in Northamptonshire

The former UK Independence Party (UKIP) leader said he was "the luckiest man alive" after surviving a light aircraft crash during his election campaign.

Nigel Farage, 46, was discharged from hospital two days after the plane he was in crashed in Northamptonshire.

He said he feared he would burn to death in the wreckage and said he and the pilot had known for five minutes before impact they were going to crash.

Mr Farage was treated in hospital for broken ribs and bruised lungs.

He said he believed the UKIP banner the plane was towing was to blame for the crash at Hinton-in-the-Hedges.



He said: "The banner hooked around the tail of the plane which meant that whenever he came in to land, it would be a nose-dive landing.

"So we spent five minutes knowing we were in for a crash landing and the question was just how big and bad it was going to be."


Nigel Farage, still wearing his UKIP rosette, in the aftermath of the crash

Mr Farage said he thought about "life and the world" as he waited to crash, adding: "There wasn't anything I could do. I thought: 'I'll just sit here quietly and keep calm'."

He said the worst part of the accident was being stuck in the plane.

"We were trapped inside it and there was petrol everywhere," he said. "I thought 'God, we've survived the impact and now we're going to burn to death'.

Two days on, he said he still felt "a bit smashed up", adding: "But when you look at the pictures, and think about the accident I've been through, I think I must be the luckiest man alive.

"I'm not quite sure who's looking after me at the moment, but they're doing a frightfully good job."

Pilot treated

Mr Farage was treated at John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford after being transferred from Horton General Hospital, Banbury. The pilot, Justin Adams, also needed hospital treatment.

Mr Farage stood against Commons speaker John Bercow in the general election, but the Buckingham seat was held by Mr Bercow, with Mr Farage coming in third place.

Mr Bercow has been the MP for the area since 1997 and polled 22,860 votes, a majority of more than 12,000.

Independent candidate John Stevens, standing under the title of Buckingham Campaign for Democracy, was second with 10,331 votes and Mr Farage polled 8,401 votes.

news.bbc.co.uk
 
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