Global General
Plane with 104 crashes in Libya; boy the only survivor
(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-05-13 06:40
 |
Large Medium Small |
|
|
Footage broadcast on Libyan state television showed the child in a hospital bed, conscious and wearing a breathing mask. The only visible sign of any injury was a bandage around the top of the child's head.
Saleh, the Afriqiyah Airways executive, told Reuters that the plane's black boxes had been recovered from the crash site.
"The deaths were probably due to the impact as I did not hear any report of a fire. The plane was traveling fast as it was still short of the runway when it crashed," Saleh said.
Reuters pictures from the crash site showed the ground carpeted with small pieces of debris, including a Dutch-language guide book to South Africa. Only the aircraft's tail fin was more or less intact, standing upright but leaning at an angle.
Libyan newspaper Quryna reported that shortly before the crash the pilot had contacted the control tower to ask them to alert emergency services because there was a problem with the plane. There was no official confirmation of that report.
Afriqiyah Airways, which is owned by the Libyan state and was established in 2001, has never before had a crash.
European aviation safety officials told Reuters that Afriqiyah's aircraft -- including the plane in Wednesday's crash -- had been subject to regular inspections and no significant problems had been reported.
|
|
