Business Standard

Plane crash in Uruguay leaves at least seven dead

Image

AFP Maldonado (Uruguay)
A small Argentine plane carrying 10 people crashed shortly after takeoff from a resort in neighboring Uruguay, leaving at least seven dead, authorities said.

The other three people were missing but there were no signs of survivors, said fire department spokesman Leandro Palomeque.

The Beechcraft prop plane had just taken off from an airport near the Uruguayan resort city of Punta del Este when the aircraft went down yesterday.

It was carrying eight passengers, the pilot and a co-pilot.

The two crew members and seven of the passengers were Argentine, while the other traveler was a woman from Portugal, the air force said.
 

The bodies have yet to be removed from the remains of the plane, which was headed to Argentina and crashed into a lagoon near the airport from which it had taken off.

The cause of the crash was not immediately known but air traffic controllers said they saw an explosion shortly after takeoff.

Don't miss the most important news and views of the day. Get them on our Telegram channel

First Published: Mar 20 2015 | 1:22 PM IST

Explore News