A Russian army personnel carrier (APC) guards the wreckage of the crashed military Mi 8 helicopter near the village of Oktyabrskoye in Chechnya, 23 March 2005.A Russian cargo plane crashed into Lake Victoria shortly after taking off from the Mwanza Region in western Tanzania on Wednesday night with eight people missing, police confirmed on Thursday. (Xinhua/AFP Photo)

    DAR ES SALAAM, March 24 (Xinhuanet) -- A Russian cargo plane crashed into Lake Victoria shortly after taking off from the Mwanza Region in western Tanzania on Wednesday night with eight people missing, police confirmed on Thursday.

    "All the eight crew members are missing after the cargo plane crashed into Lake Victoria less than two km northwest from the Mwanza airport," Mwanza Regional Police Commissioner Stephen Ziloti told Xinhua by phone on Thursday.

    The police officer said the air crash occurred at around 11:00 p.m. (8:00 GMT) on Wednesday. Tanzanian police have located the spot of the accident whereas they have not found any person inside or outside the wreckage for most parts of the plane are still underneath the water.

    Rescue teams are trying to remove the wreckage from Lake Victoria, the world's second largest fresh water. Investigation on the cause of the air crash is still under way. Enditem