ALMATY, Aug. 24 (Xinhua) -- A Boeing-737 passenger jet crashed in Bishkek, capital of Central Asia's Kyrgyzstan on Sunday, according to reports reaching here.

    There are casualties when the plane hit the ground during a takeoff near the Manas Airport, the Interfax news agency reported citing an airport source.

    The aircraft is owned by Itak-Air, a private airline company. It was due to make a flight from Bishkek to Mashhad, Iran.