WORLD> Africa
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WORLD> Africa
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Sudanese plane bursts into flames, killing dozens
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-06-11 06:43 Raqeeb Abdel-Latif, head of the Sudan Airways office in Damascus, Syria, said the plane had joined the Sudanese national carrier fleet seven months ago. It took off from Damascus with 203 passengers on board, mostly Africans and a few non-Sudanese nationals and 14 crew members. It stopped in Amman, where 34 additional passengers came on board. Due to inclement weather, the aircraft stopped at Port Sudan Airport along the Red Sea picking up 35 passengers and refueling before heading back, Sudanese Ambassador John Ukec Lueth Ukec said in Washington. Upon arrival the weather was "still very bad," said Ukec. "There was a lot of water on the runway and they still tried to land." Most of the passengers were believed to be Sudanese, with some foreigners among them, the ambassador said. Spokesmen for the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board in Washington said they were monitoring the situation. The Airbus A310 is a twin-engine, widebody plane used by a number of carriers around the world. Typically configured with about 220 seats, it is a shorter version of the popular A300. Airbus is operated by the European aerospace giant European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co. It has delivered 255 A310s as of May. An Airbus spokesman in Paris declined immediate comment on the crash. |
