Marussia test driver Maria De Villota has been injured in a testing accident at Duxford Airfield

According to the team the accident happened at the end of her first installation run and involved an impact with the team's support truck.

“At approximately 09.15hrs (BST) this morning, the team's test driver Maria De Villota had an accident in the team's MR-01 race car at Duxford Airfield where she was testing the car for the first time," said the Russian team in a brief statement. "The accident happened at the end of her first installation run and involved an impact with the team’s support truck.

"Maria has been transferred to hospital. Once her medical condition has been assessed a further statement will be issued."

However, in a separate statement, Gary Sanderson, a spokesman for the East of England ambulance service, said that the Spanish driver had "sustained life-threatening injuries" and was being treated at Addenbrookes Hospital in Cambridge.

According to eye-witness Chris Mann, a presenter with BBC Cambridgeshire: the "inexplicably accelerated" into the back of the team's parked support truck.

"The driver's helmet was impacted on the side of the truck," he added. "It just happened suddenly, a very shocking incident. The car slowed down as you see happens during a grand prix, for it to then be reversed into the pits which was actually a tent. But at the last second it just suddenly accelerated again so by the time it hit the truck, it was doing 30 or 40 miles an hour."

The 32-year-old has raced in a variety of single-seater and sports car categories, including Spanish F3, the Daytona 24 Hours, the Euroseries 3000 and Superleague Formula Championship.

She has also experienced an F1 cockpit previously, having received a test drive with Lotus Renault at Paul Ricard last year, where she achieved over 180 miles of running.

Pitpass would like to extend its thoughts to Maria’s family and friends, and the whole Marussia team.

Updates will follow only when further officially confirmed information is available.