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Afghan crashed plane makes
no contact with Pakistan
Search for possible remains
of jetliner underway in Afghanistan
Backgrounder: World's major
air crashes since 2003
Picture taken on Jan. 9, 2005
shows a Boeing-737 of Afghanistan's sole private airline Kam Air landing
on the airport of Kabul, Afghanistan. The missing Kam Air Boeing 737
airliner with 96 passengers and eight crew on board was confirmed at
last crashed, local media said Friday. (Xinhua
Photo) | KABUL, Feb. 4
(Xinhuanet) -- The Kam Air Boeing 737 airliner that was missing Thursday
afternoon was confirmed at last crashed, local media said Friday.
The airliner, carrying 96 passengers, was traveling from
the western city of Herat to the capital since late Thursday afternoon.
On board the plane were also six Russian crew members and
two Afghan staff.
International peacekeepers and the Afghan military
were mobilized to search for the plane in the northern mountain area.
In a press conference held earlier in the capital,
however, top official of the Afghan Ministry of Transportation confirmed the
missing of the airliner, but he would not disclose any details.
"With deep sorrow I want to announce that a Boeing
737 of Kam Air with 96 passengers aboard and eight crew went missing at 3:30 pm
Thursday while trying to land on at Kabul airport," Enayatullah Qasimi told
journalists at a news conference.
There were seven foreigners among the passengers on board
but the authorities declined to identify them. Some circles believe they
belonged to ISAF.
Earlier sources at Kam Air confirmed that three
foreigners including one American and two Turkish were aboard the ill-fated
plane.
The jet piloted by Russian pilots disappeared from radar
screen at 3.1 miles east of the Kabul airport, added the official.
It is the first air tragedy in the post-war nation
over the past three years.
Kam Air, established in 2003, is the only private
company having been operating with its three airliners in Afghanistan.
Enditem
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