At Least 100 Reported Killed In Overrun Accident
ANN REALTIME REPORTING
06.10.08 1730 EDT: There continue to be conflicting
reports as to what caused a Sudan Airways airliner to catch fire
after landing at Khartoum International Airport Tuesday night...
but most sources agree at least half the 217 passengers and crew
onboard were able to escape the burning wreckage.
According to scheduling timetables posted on the airline's
website, the accident flight appears to be SD109, inbound from
Damascus. Footage from the scene shows the burning wreckage of what
looks to be an Airbus A310.
While most reports indicate the airliner overran the runway
while landing in a thunderstorm, Khartoum Airport director Youssef
Ibrahim told Sudanese television the airliner had "landed safely,"
and the pilot was in communications with ground control when the
incident occurred.
"At this moment, one of the engines exploded and the plane
caught fire," Ibrahim said. "It's a technical reason."
That account contradicts a number of other reports, however,
including statements from Sudanese police. Chief Mohammad Najib
told officials bad weather "caused the plane to crash land, split
into two and catch fire.
"We believe that most of the passengers were able to make it out
and escape with their lives," Najib added, reports The Associated
Press. Images from the scene show several of the airliner's escape
'chutes deployed.
There are also reports the accident flight initially diverted to
Port Sudan, after aborting its first approach to Khartoum. The
airliner later diverted back to its destination airport.
Sudanese news reports state at least 100 people were killed in
the accident.
Original Report
1515 EDT: CNN
reports a Sudanese airliner has crashed on landing in Khartoum
International Airport in Sudan, with as many as 200 persons
onboard.
Details are sketchy at this time. Sudanese television reports
the Sudan Airways airliner, type unknown, overran the runway while
attempting to land at night in rainy conditions, with thunderstorms
in the area.
There are unconfirmed reports of as many as 100 casualties,
though officials say a number of survivors have been rescued.
Images from the scene show the skeletal hulk of an aircraft on
the runway, engulfed in flames. Video appears to show a large,
widebody aircraft -- possibly an Airbus A300 -- with its fuselage
largely intact. The aircraft's nose is supported by its nosegear,
but its maingear appears to have been sheared off.
ANN will continue to update the situation as more information
becomes available.