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Laos crash: 44 dead as plane goes down in Mekong River Laos crash: 44 dead as plane goes down in Mekong River
(35 minutes later)
All 44 people aboard a domestic flight in Laos were killed when the plane crashed in the south of the country, officials in neighbouring Thailand say. At least 44 people aboard a domestic flight in Laos were killed when the plane crashed in the south, officials in neighbouring Thailand say.
The Lao Airlines plane came down in the Mekong River. Seven of the dead are French nationals, officials in Paris said. Thais, Chinese and South Koreans were also killed.
The aircraft crashed in bad weather just before it was due to land at Pakse airport, an airline official quoted by the Bangkok Post said. The plane belonging to state-run Lao Airlines came down in the Mekong River on a flight from the capital Vientiane.
The plane was on a flight from the Lao capital Vientiane when it crashed at about 16:00 local time (09:00 GMT). It crashed in bad weather just before it was due to land at Pakse airport, Lao Airlines said on its Facebook page.
It said there was no news of any survivors so far.
Half-submerged
Flight QV301 came down about 8km (5 miles) from Pakse airport.
Thai foreign ministry spokesman Sek Wannamethee said there were 39 passengers and five crew aboard the plane, citing information from the Thai Embassy in Vientiane.Thai foreign ministry spokesman Sek Wannamethee said there were 39 passengers and five crew aboard the plane, citing information from the Thai Embassy in Vientiane.
The aircraft came down about 8km (5 miles) from Pakse airport, he said.
Thai TV pictures show a plane half-submerged in the river, AFP news agency reports.Thai TV pictures show a plane half-submerged in the river, AFP news agency reports.
The crashed plane was an ATR-72 belonging to the state-owned airline, the agency said. A foreign national living in Pakse told the Bangkok Post by email of chaotic scenes as victims' bodies were brought in.
"The Chinese Temple in front of my house has become an emergency centre," he said.
The crashed plane is believed to be an ATR 72 - a French-Italian manufactured twin-engine plane commonly used by airlines in the region.
Those on board are reported to also include five Thai nationals, three South Koreans and two Chinese citizens.
The flight between the capital Vientiane and Pakse is frequently used by foreign tourists, says BBC South-East Asia correspondent Jonathan Head.
Lao Airlines is small company with just 14 aircraft in its fleet, and until now, a good safety record, our correspondent adds.