Uber driver ’emerged from wreckage’ of M62 crash that killed two Ryanair pilots

HGV driver Anthony Burns jailed after ploughing into taxi on the motorway near Warrington

12:28, 17 Jan 2026

Anthony Burns, aged 63, was driving the HGV that caused the crash(Image: Cheshire Police)

Police only discovered an Uber driver had survived a devastating collision when they noticed his hand "emerging from the wreckage". Ryanair pilots Jamie Fernandes, 24, and Matthew Greenhalgh, 28, lost their lives when the taxi transporting them to Liverpool John Lennon Airport became trapped between two HGVs.

The incident happened after lorry driver Anthony Burns, who was travelling behind them, failed to notice a line of stationary vehicles ahead on the M62's westbound carriageway, which had been closed. While initially suspected of having fallen asleep behind the wheel, he now maintains he was "effectively on autopilot" and "did not register what was ahead of him until it was far, far too late".

Liverpool Crown Court was told this week that Uber driver Rashid Mehmood picked up Mr Fernandes and Mr Greenhalgh from Luton Airport at approximately 1.30am on July 10, 2024, to drive them to Liverpool John Lennon Airport.

He later said his passengers "immediately went to sleep" and described the journey in his Toyota Auris as "relatively non-eventful".

However, Damian Nolan, the prosecutor, detailed how "all of that was to change on the M62[1] as the Toyota headed westbound and neared Liverpool". As they approached junction eight at Warrington[2] West, overhead gantry signs instructed drivers to reduce speed from 70mph to 60mph, then to 50mph and finally 40mph, due to an incident on the opposite carriageway requiring the temporary closure of the westbound motorway so paramedics could reach the scene.

This resulted in a "pretty big queue of traffic" near the entry slip road, with the Uber coming to a stop behind a lorry. CCTV footage showed both vehicles stationary for several seconds before Burns, of Headington Road in Upton, Wirral, driving the HGV, crashed into the rear of the taxi, braking less than one second prior to impact, reports the Liverpool Echo[3].

Mr Mehmood's car was then crushed between the two lorries, with Mr Fernandes and Mr Greenhalgh being left with injuries which were "not survivable".

The taxi driver meanwhile "remarkably survived" after sustaining a broken shoulder, "multiple rib fractures" and continuing difficulties with his spine, with officers only becoming aware of his presence upon seeing his hand "emerging from the wreckage".

Pilots Matt Greenhalgh, left, and Jamie Fernandes who died in the crash(Image: )

In a statement which was read to the court on his behalf during Tuesday's hearing, Mr Mehmood, said: "The day of the collision was like any other day. I don't have any memory of the collision. The first thing I really knew was when I was in hospital with my family."

The statement detailed that Mr Mehmood, who said he had been unable to work since last July, had struggled to come to terms with the tragedy which he said he still thinks about "every day".

Adding: "I often think, why did I take that job?

What if I'd taken a diff route? These are questions I ask myself every day. This is a tragedy.

Two persons have lost their lives. Their families have lost loved ones, and my sincere condolences go out to them."

One witness, Iain McGilp, told police that it was "like the driver [Burns] had fallen asleep approaching the traffic".

Mr Nolan said the lorry was not found to have any defects which would have caused the crash, with the 63-year-old defendant having seemingly "had an unobstructed view of the rear of the queueing traffic" for at least 500 metres before the crash took place.

Burns was not found to have used his mobile phone at the time or been under the influence of drink or drugs. A tachograph unit fitted to his HGV showed he had been "travelling at a steady 56mph" for 35 minutes prior to the incident, save for a "short period of deceleration" around four minutes earlier.

Under police interview, Burns answered no comment to all questions.

He has 16 previous convictions for 28 offences, including receiving a suspended prison sentence for arson in the 1990s.

Burns was also handed three penalty points in August 2021 for driving a HGV with an unsafe load after his lorry shed its cargo on the A18 near Scunthorpe.

Michael Hayton KC, defending, told the court: "The victims were two young man of bright futures, bright pasts, loving families with a great deal to look forward to."

With Judge Simon Medland KC having observed that Burns was "riven by remorse", his counsel added: "There is very clear remorse and regret for the profound impact that his behaviour and actions have had upon the families of all the victims."

Mr Hayton added that Burns too had suffered in the intervening period having lost members of his own family. He added Burns was "effectively on autopilot" leading up to the crash, and that he had been a professional driver for 30 years and that he was normally a "safe driver".

Acknowledging Burns had "driven dangerously" on this occasion resulting in two deaths and serious injury, he said he had driven at a steady speed for more than half an hour before the crash, suggesting he was conscious, as did his late attempt to brake before impact.

Burns' counsel acknowledged he did not notice what was happening on the road ahead of his until it was "far, far too late", and that the crash was a result of him "just switching off" for 20 seconds, despite being warned by the matrix signs.

Adding: "Here, for a few seconds, he did not notice what was going on. It is dangerous driving that gives him a substantial sentence of imprisonment that, at his age, will make it difficult, and, with his mental health, will make it difficult."

Burns admitted two counts of causing death by dangerous driving and one of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

Appearing in the dock wearing a black jacket over a white shirt and grey tie and sporting short grey hair, he appeared to shake his head as he was led to the cells after being jailed for 10 years.

Anthony Burns, aged 63(Image: Cheshire Police)

Sentencing, Judge Medland said: "Nobody suggests for one moment that you set out that day to cause harm or injury, still less death, to anybody. For decades by then, you had been a commercial driver and an experienced HGV man. You were not on your phone, you were not under the influence of drink or drugs.

"Whether you were on a sort of robotic autopilot, who knows?

You do not know. You were driving at 56mph in a 40mph advisory in torrential rain, with heavy road water and spray. This was a speed which was highly inappropriate for the prevailing weather[4] conditions.

"This dreadful, tragic episode killed two men and seriousLY injured a third.

You have heard, and will have understood, the terrible and enduring impact which this episode had on the family and friends of Mr Fernandes and Mr Greenhalgh, and the enduring day to day impact it has on Mr Mehmood.

"The word grief does not quite sum up the feeling. There is always, of course, the oppressive guilt of the survivor, which you probably feel yourself. This sentence is not in any way a value of their lives.

That would be impossible.

The court must instead reach for what it sees as a just sentence in this case."

Burns will be required to serve at least two thirds of his prison term behind bars before becoming eligible for release.

He was banned from driving for 150 months and will be required to pass an extended retest before he is allowed back on the roads.

References

1. ^ M62 (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
2. ^ Warrington (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)
3. ^ the Liverpool Echo (www.liverpoolecho.co.uk)
4. ^ weather (www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)