An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 crashed Sunday morning, March 10, en route from Addis Ababa to Nairobi, killing all 149 passengers and 8 crew on board, state media reported as African leaders offered condolences.
"We hereby confirm that our scheduled flight ET 302 from Addis Ababa to Nairobi was involved in accident today," the airline said in a statement, later confirming a report by Ethiopia's FANA Broadcasting Corp that there were no survivors.
"It is believed that there were 149 passengers and 8 crew on board the flight," it said.
The airline has not provided information on passengers' nationalities but there are reports people from 33 countries were on board. The crash came on the eve of a major, annual assembly of the UN Environment Programme opening in Nairobi.
State-owned Ethiopian Airlines, Africa's largest carrier, said the plane had taken off at 8:38 am (0538 GMT) from Bole International Airport and "lost contact" 6 minutes later near Bishoftu, a town some 60 kilometers (37 miles) southeast of Addis Ababa by road.
The weather in the capital, according to an Agence France-Presse reporter, was clear when the brand-new Boeing plane, delivered to Ethiopia last year, plane took off.
The Boeing came down near the village of Tulu Fara outside Bishoftu.
An Agence France-Presse reporter said there was a massive crater at the crash site, with belongings and airplane parts scattered widely.
Rescue crews were retrieving human remains from the wreckage.
Police and troops were on the scene, as well as a crash investigation team from Ethiopia's civil aviation agency.
In the Kenyan capital, family members, friends, and colleagues of passengers were frantically waiting for news at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). – Rappler.com
SOURCE: https://www.rappler.com/world/regions/africa/225403-boeing-737-addis-nairobi-crashes-ethiopian-airlines
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