The Sudan Airways plane, carrying 203 passengers and 14 crew members, split in two and burst into flames after apparently veering off a runway at the airport in the capital city of Khartoum,
Sudanese TV reported.
The head of Sudanese police, Mohammad Najib, said bad weather had caused the crash, however, Youssef Ibrahim, director of the Khartoum airport, saying a technical problem was to blame.
The jet — which originated in Damascus, Syria, and was flying from Amman, Jordan — was landing in heavy rains and thunderstorms. The plane already had tried to land at the Khartoum Airport once, but wasn't able to due to the weather.
"We believe that most of the passengers were able to make it out and escape with their lives," said Najib, without disclosing further details on how they escaped.
He stressed that officials could not say exactly how many were killed, and it could take some time before a definitive cause and specific details of the crash are known.
Earlier reports put the death toll at 100, which would make it the deadliest crash since July 2007, when a Tam Linhas Aereas SA jetliner Airbus 320 skidded off runway while landing in Sao Paulo, Brazil, killing all 187 people on board and 12 on the ground.
Sudan has a poor aviation safety record. In May, a plane crash in a remote area of southern Sudan killed 24 people, including key members of the southern Sudanese government.
In July 2003, a Sudan Airways Boeing 737 en route from Port Sudan to Khartoum crashed soon after takeoff, killing all 115 people on board.
After that crash, Sudanese officials blamed sanctions for restricting vital aircraft parts. The U.S. State Department said there was no ban on equipment needed for aviation safety.
In 1997, then President Clinton issued an executive order barring the export of goods and technology to Sudan because of the country's "support for international terrorism, ongoing efforts to destabilize neighboring governments, and the prevalence of human rights violations."
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,365346,00.html
THERE is the REAL article!
Perfect! this is STRAIGHT from the channel im just watching this very second!
except its a video not still pic's
Wow...and ima ride one of those in two weeks...
Bismillah
Inna Lillah wa inna alayhi raji'oon!
May allah grant all of them muslims who died in that plane Jannah!