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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Ivory Coast plane crash: Aircraft goes down in Atlantic Ocean near Abidjan | Ivory Coast plane crash: Aircraft goes down in Atlantic Ocean near Abidjan |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A plane has crashed into the sea shortly after taking off from the international airport in Ivory Coast’s main city Abidjan. | A plane has crashed into the sea shortly after taking off from the international airport in Ivory Coast’s main city Abidjan. |
| Four Moldovan citizens were killed and a further two injured, Ivorian authorities said. Four French citizens, reportedly soldiers, were also hurt. | Four Moldovan citizens were killed and a further two injured, Ivorian authorities said. Four French citizens, reportedly soldiers, were also hurt. |
| The crash happened during a storm with heavy rain and lightning. | The crash happened during a storm with heavy rain and lightning. |
| Images showed the plane in pieces in the surf as witnesses and officials arrived at the shoreline near Port-Bouet. | Images showed the plane in pieces in the surf as witnesses and officials arrived at the shoreline near Port-Bouet. |
| A spokesman for French armed forces in Ivory Coast said it was carrying military cargo. The injured have been transported to Abidjan’s Port-Bouet camp for treatment, he added. | |
| One aviation analyst claimed the aircraft was a Soviet-designed Antonov model belonging to a charter company sometimes used by the UN. | One aviation analyst claimed the aircraft was a Soviet-designed Antonov model belonging to a charter company sometimes used by the UN. |
| Its tail appeared to have shorn off from section of the plane where the wings join the fuselage. | Its tail appeared to have shorn off from section of the plane where the wings join the fuselage. |
| Insignia on the tail suggested it may belong to Valan International Cargo Charter, whose logo is a distinctive winged white ‘V’ on a blue background. | Insignia on the tail suggested it may belong to Valan International Cargo Charter, whose logo is a distinctive winged white ‘V’ on a blue background. |
| A call to the company’s head office in Moldova by The Independent was not answered. The firm operates the Antonov AN-26-100 model. | A call to the company’s head office in Moldova by The Independent was not answered. The firm operates the Antonov AN-26-100 model. |
| Hundreds of onlookers gathered at the beach on Saturday as rescue workers ran to the scene. | |
| “There was winds yesterday and I saw how planes seemed to have difficulties in getting up,” a witness said. | |
| Air traffic at the airport appeared to continue after the crash, according to flight-tracking website FlightRadar24. | |
| In February 2000, a Kenya Airways Airbus 310 carrying 179 people destined for Lagos, Nigeria crashed into the ocean after take-off from Abidjan, leaving only 10 survivors. | |
| Additional reporting by agencies |