Ethiopian airliner crashes off Lebanon’s coast, 54 Lebanese on board

Local Editor, 25-1-2010



An Ethiopian Boeing airliner transporting 97 passengers crashed Monday at 2:30 a.m. shortly after takeoff from Beirut International Airport.


Witnesses reported seeing "a ball of fire" as the jet plunged into the water.

Public Works and Transportation Minister Ghazi Aridi said that an Ethiopian airliner transporting 90 passengers and crew crashed in stormy weather just after takeoff in Lebanon early Monday, plunging into the Mediterranean Sea after it lost contact with the airport control tower shortly after the take off.

 "The control tower was assisting the pilot of the plane on takeoff and suddenly lost contact for no known reason," Aridi told reporters, adding that the Boeing 737 crashed some 3.5 kilometers off the coast.

He said the passengers include 54 Lebanese, 22 Ethiopians, one Iraqi, one French woman, one Syrian and seven crew members. There were also several dual nationals including two British-Lebanese, one Canadian-Lebanese and a Russian-Lebanese.

Aridi said he formed an investigative committee to determine the cause of the crash and contacted nearby countries to assist in the search and rescue effort.

The Lebanese army, navy as well as UNIFIL were assisting in the rescue, Aridi added.

"We have contacted everyone, inside and outside the country, that can assist us and the Lebanese navy, the army and UNIFIL have joined in the rescue," the minister added.

Families of the passengers, some of them weeping, could be seen arriving at Rafik Hariri International Airport, where they were escorted to a private area to await news of their loved ones.

The Boeing 737-800, which entered into commercial service in 1998, is one of the latest versions of the world's most widely used short to medium-haul airliners, and is capable of carrying up to 189 passengers.

 French Ambassador to Lebanon Denis Pietton's wife, Marla Sanzhez, was on board the Ethiopian airliner carrying 92 passengers that crashed into the Mediterranean Sea early Monday on takeoff, a Lebanese government official told AFP.

Since the beginning of rescue and relief operations, 7 passengers were found. Rescue and relief operations will continue for the three coming days.