Dutch study black boxes in Turkish Airlines crash

Dutch officials have taken the flight recorders, known as black boxes, to Paris where French authorities are providing technical assistance.

A reconstruction of the accident will be made in combination with data from the recorders and information gathered at the scene, Dutch Safety Board spokeswoman Sandra Groenendal said.

"We will know more after the weekend and probably have clues to determine the direction of the investigation and how to proceed," she said.

Dutch officials said three of the nine people killed in the crash were Turkish crew but could not confirm the identity of the other victims.

Haarlemmermeer mayor Theo Weterings said in total 121 people were treated in hospitals around Amsterdam and 63 of them were still in care, six in critical condition.

"Four of them are in such a severe condition that we have not been able to communicate with them," Weterings told a news conference.

The priority is to identity the victims and inform relatives, he said. The plane was carrying mainly Dutch and Turkish nationals.

Victims' names will not be released until all were confirmed and relatives notified. A plane carrying 67 relatives from Turkey landed at Schiphol Airport on Wednesday.

Flight TK 1951 crashed in light fog while trying to land at Schiphol and passengers described the plane as suddenly dropping to the ground during landing.

Safety Board chairman Pieter van Vollenhoven told Dutch media the plane left a short trail in the field where it crashed, indicating the engines might have stopped providing forward thrust.

"If you then lose speed, you then literally fall out of the sky," he was quoted saying.

The investigation is being led by the Dutch Safety Board, which will determine the cause of the crash, and the public prosecution office, which is investigating questions of guilt.

Three staff from Boeing (BA.N), the plane's manufacturer, and two investigators from the manufacturer of the engines, CFM International, are also assisting Dutch authorities. Turkish Airlines will provide maintenance records of the plane.