Global Airport News
A cargo plane carrying eight people crashed on Sunday in a residential area of Karachi, Pakistan's biggest city, setting buildings on fire and further casualties are feared.
Police chief Fayyaz Leghari said five people were killed. Ambulance services said there were no survivors. Express 24/7 television said 10 people died.
The plane went down about one minute after taking off from Karachi airport, the Civil Aviation Authority said. Spokesman Pervez George said it was a Russian cargo aircraft bound for the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, and all crew members were Russian.
The plane hit a building under construction at a navy housing complex. Several unoccupied buildings nearby caught fire. Rescue workers brought a huge blaze under control.
The crash triggered a massive blaze in the Dalmai neighbourhood, where the Pakistan Air Force and Navy have residential apartments close to the airport, witnesses and officials said.
Nisar Ali was sitting at his home with friends about 1 km away. "At first we thought it was a flare and then we ran to the area and realised it was a crash," he said. Hundreds of people gathered at the site.
On 5 November a small plane chartered to an international oil company crashed after take-off from Karachi airport, killing all 21 on board.
A Pakistani passenger plane crashed in heavy rain near Islamabad in July, killing all 152 on board, Pakistan's worst aviation accident.
