The Boeing 737 crashed en route to Nairobi, six minutes after taking off from Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa.
An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 crashed en route from Addis Ababa to Nairobi with 149 passengers and eight crew believed to be on board, Ethiopian Airlines said.
Ethiopia’s prime minister offered condolences to victims’ families.
“We hereby confirm that our scheduled flight ET 302 from Addis Ababa to Nairobi was involved in an accident today,” the airline said in a statement on Sunday.
“It is believed that there were 149 passengers and eight crew on board the flight but we are currently confirming the details of the passenger manifest for the flight,” according to the statement.
The airline said “search and rescue operations are in progress and we have no confirmed information about survivors or any possible casualties.”
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The plane took off at 8:38am (06:38 GMT) from Bole International Airport and “lost contact” six minutes later near Bishoftu, a town about 60km southeast of Addis Ababa by road.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s office tweeted it “would like to express its deepest condolences to the families of those that have lost their loved ones on Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 on regular scheduled flight to Nairobi, Kenya this morning.”
The Office of the PM, on behalf of the Government and people of Ethiopia, would like to express it’s deepest condolences to the families of those that have lost their loved ones on Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 on regular scheduled flight to Nairobi, Kenya this morning.
— Office of the Prime Minister – Ethiopia (@PMEthiopia) March 10, 2019
Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta offered prayers for the family members and loved-ones of those on the plane.
“We are saddened by the news of an Ethiopian Airlines passenger aircraft that is reported to have crashed 6 minutes after takeoff en route to Kenya. My prayers go to all the families and associates of those on board,” Kenyatta said in Twitter.
Ethiopian Airlines said it would send staff to the accident scene to “do everything possible to assist the emergency services”.
It would also set up a passenger information centre and a dedicated telephone number for family and friends of people who may have been on the flight.
The Boeing 737-800MAX is the same type of plane as the Indonesian Lion Air jet that crashed last October, 13 minutes after takeoff from Jakarta, killing all 189 people on board.
Breaking: Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 MAX has reportedly been involved in a fatal incident, en route from Addis Ababa to Nairobi. #ET302
— Alex Macheras (@AlexInAir) March 10, 2019
Ethiopian Airlines flight #ET302 dropped from radar 6 minutes after departure from Addis Ababa
The jet is a brand new Boeing 737 MAX 8 – delivered to the airline just four months ago. pic.twitter.com/o01HDgEI16
— Alex Macheras (@AlexInAir) March 10, 2019
The last major accident involving an Ethiopian Airlines passenger plane was a Boeing 737-800 that exploded after taking off from Lebanon in 2010, killing 83 passengers and seven crew.
Boeing Airlpanes said on its Twitter account that it was aware of the reports about Sunday’s accident and was “closely monitoring the situation”.
More to follow
SOURCE: AL JAZEERA NEWS
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