Hi,

Early on the morning of 06-May-2010 whilst most serious politicians were seeking out those few extra votes and glad handing party workers to thank them for their contributions and hard work Nigel Farage had decided to go on a jolly in a light aircraft towing an advertising banner.

Surely one pays someone to go and do the tedious and in fact quite dangerous job of towing banners. This is the taxi run end of flying crop dusting and banner dragging! It also has a very poor record in America where it is more common.

Anyway up they went just before 08:00hrs. the pilot failed in his 12 year old Polish plane to pick up the banner and it is reputed that he failed upto 7 times!

In fact I believe that on his 5th. pass having possibly cut his speed a little too much he picked up the banner and it SEEMS he tried to open up and climb but it SEEMS the banner MAY have been caught by a gust of wind and a cable caught a control plane (aeleron or similar) the plane now well of the ground no amount of 'tugging and yanking' made the plane respond.

The banner would seem to have been VERY WISELY let loose and caught by the wind ended up some distance from the plane.

The plane would seem to have crashed out of control.

Being a very small 3 seater the plane 'interfacing with the ground' at speed came off very much the worst! The final crash scene revealed the plane had flipped upside down.

Fortunately and to some extent surprisingly there was no fatality and Nigel Farage was extricated he was very badly 'thumped around' in the accident and his lap strap had held him, probably completely unconcious for a period.

Sadly someone released a series of photographs showing him seemingly unconcious upside down in the wrekage and then stumbling around completely dazed.

I gather he has broken ribs, damage or fracture to his sternum and a smashed or broken tooth (teeth?).

Taken to hospital from the scene Farage's agent later said "Nigel was unconcious but still speaking" a strange comment but why are we not surprised!

Subsequently in hospital it was we understand discovered he also had a chipped vertebra. Due to concerns about his heart he was transfered from the General Hospital to The John Radcliff Hospital at Oxford for further tests and monitoring and I understand his wife was brought to the hospital from Kent for a brief visit.

This morning I am pleased to hear Nigel Farage was released from hospital.

I gather that the pilot's injuries were considered life threatening but ocver 50 hours after the incident there is no report of his death and it is to be hoped he will make a full recovery in time - But I know not!

Conspiracy Theorists are already providing more than adequate material with talks of severed cables and Scenes of Crime Officers etc.

This is a bit silly minded that the plane CRASHED! ALL air accident scenes are considered 'scenes of crime' and ALL air accidents are investigated fully and long after the event there will likely be an AAIB Report made public.

There is every likelihood the plane had snapped cables - if the aileron or similar jammed or was jammed the possible 'tugging and yanking' by the pilot could well have parted the control cable! Impact with the ground seems the most likely cause of bust cables!

Turning the plane back over could well have broken the cable lets leave it to the AAIB rather than speculate, especially as Nigel Farage really isn't significant enough for ANYONE to have attempted sabotage based on politics.

Clearly there will be fantasists dreaming up conspiracies to fit the shreds of comment made! Get real Nigel Farage has led a Political Party without vision, without competence and with staggering ineptitude leading it to what I believe was a 3.1% share of the vote after 17 years!

Farage did do a little better than expected in Buckingham but having syphoned off much of the resource and cash available from anywhere within the party it is hardly surprising but even then his result was based on the vile and grubby propaganda of gutter politics at which he Mark Croucher and others in his claque are so experienced at.

You will note, despite the wild claims made, that he was going to beat Bercow and be UKIP's first MP it was clear before the election was called that despite ALL the conditions being in his favour he didn't stand a chance and even his supporters were expecting a second place.

In desparation a series of smear campaigns were launched by UKIP but even then UKIP's popularity waned and the relative outsider the clear also ran John Stevens ended up beating Farage and UKIP into an ignominious third place with 1/3rd. of the votes of John Bercow and clearly trailing John Stevens.

One has to ask whether it was worth so debasing UKIP with their huge spend, self serving Farage use of party resources and gutter propaganda from Mark Croucher - surely UKIP must concede such behaviour does more to harm UKIP than ever to enhance it.

Is it not time for UKIP to reflect and realise they have clearly over the years done themselves immense harm with their childish antics and gutter behaviour.

One parting thought on this subject is not just to wish Nigel Farage and his pilot a full recovery but to point out to the Conspiracy Theorists that if you look closely at the photograph of the accident - even before they had extricated Farage and his pilot the engine is quite clearly missing, could it have been stolen to cause the crash!

Regards,
Greg L-W.