BRASILIA, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- A small airplane carrying at least20 people crashed into a tributary of the Amazon River in northwestern Brazil on Saturday, killing at least six people onboard, news reports said.

    Four people survived and were sent to a local hospital. They were said to have been seated towards the tail of the plane.

    Six bodies have been pulled out of the Manacapuru river by Saturday night, firefighters said. The rest of them were listed missing.

    There were conflicting reports of the number of people aboard the aircraft. The Air Force said a pilot had reported 20 people onboard. But the Aerotaxi Manaus company, which owned the aircraft, said the plane was carrying 24 people, including four children and two crew members.

    The aircraft, a Bandeirante PT-SEA, can reportedly carry 16 passengers or 1,500 kilograms of cargo.

    The plane left the city of Coari in Amazonas state for the state capital Manaus at 12:38 p.m. (1738 GMT) under warning of strong winds and rain. It asked permission to return shortly after takeoff because of the bad weather, said the company.

    The plane disappeared from the radar screen and lost contact with the air traffic control center after the center consented to its request, the company said.

    Around 14:00 p.m. (1900 GMT), the plane crashed into the river when the pilots tried to land the plane on an abandoned runway in the town of Manacapuru.

    Divers of the local fire department have located the aircraft, and an investigation is underway to identify the cause of the accident.

Airplane with 20 aboard crashed into river in Brazil 

    BRASILIA, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- A small airplane with about 20 people aboard crashed into a tributary of the Amazon River, in north-western Brazil on Saturday, leaving four survived and the others missing, reported local media.

    Four people, including a child, survived the crash, confirmed the local Fire Department.  Full story