Cargo plane crashes in southern Algeria, killing 7

USPA News - A Ukrainian cargo plane flying from Scotland to Equatorial Guinea crashed Saturday in a mountainous area of southern Algeria, killing all seven crew members on board, Algerian and Ukrainian officials said. The cause of the crash was not immediately known.

The accident happened at about 1:44 a.m. local time when the Antonov 12 aircraft, belonging to Ukraine Air Alliance, went down about 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) south of the airport in Tamanrasset, which is the capital of southern Tamanrasset province. The crash happened about three minutes after the plane took off from the airport. Emergency services later arrived at the crash site but did not find any survivors, Algeria`s Transport Ministry said. At least three bodies were recovered. The ministry said the aircraft was carrying six Ukrainian nationals and one Russian citizen, through their identities were not immediately disclosed. Ukraine`s foreign affairs ministry said the aircraft was carrying oil equipment, but had no further details. Algeria`s Transport Ministry said the Ukraine Air Alliance plane was on a flight from Glasgow Prestwick Airport in Scotland to Malabo International Airport in Equatorial Guinea and had made a number of stops due to technical reasons. The ministry did not provide further details about the technical stops or whether they may be linked to the cause of the crash, which was preceded by an unspecified distress signal. Technical stops were made, among others, at Ghardaïa in northern Algeria and Tamanrasset near the crash site. Algeria has been involved in several major air disasters in recent months, including the crash of Air Algerie Flight AH5017 in northern Mali on July 24, killing all 116 people on board. And in February, an Algerian Air Force transport plane crashed in a mountainous area in northern Algeria, killing all but one of the 77 people on board.