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| Laos Deputy PM Douangchay Phichit 'dies in plane crash' | Laos Deputy PM Douangchay Phichit 'dies in plane crash' |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Laos Defence Minister and Deputy PM Douangchay Phichit has reportedly been killed along with other senior officials in a military plane crash. | Laos Defence Minister and Deputy PM Douangchay Phichit has reportedly been killed along with other senior officials in a military plane crash. |
| The aircraft came down in the northern province of Xiangkhouang, nearly 500km (311 miles) from the capital Vientiane where its journey began. | The aircraft came down in the northern province of Xiangkhouang, nearly 500km (311 miles) from the capital Vientiane where its journey began. |
| The Laotian news agency and the Thai foreign ministry said the minister and his wife had died in the crash. | The Laotian news agency and the Thai foreign ministry said the minister and his wife had died in the crash. |
| Up to 20 people were on board, including the governor of Vientiane. | Up to 20 people were on board, including the governor of Vientiane. |
| The officials are believed to have been travelling to an official ceremony in Xiangkhouang. | The officials are believed to have been travelling to an official ceremony in Xiangkhouang. |
| The official Laos news agency KPL said the plane that went down was an Antonov AN- 74TK-300 plane operated by the Laos air force. | The official Laos news agency KPL said the plane that went down was an Antonov AN- 74TK-300 plane operated by the Laos air force. |
| Laos, a landlocked country of about seven million people, has an authoritarian communist one-party government and is one of Asia's poorest nations. | Laos, a landlocked country of about seven million people, has an authoritarian communist one-party government and is one of Asia's poorest nations. |
| It has a poor air safety record. Last October a civilian airplane crashed into the Mekong river in bad weather, killing all 49 people on board. | |
| In 1998, a Vietnamese military aircaraft crashed in Xiangkhouang. All passengers on board, including a senior Vietnamese general, were killed. | In 1998, a Vietnamese military aircaraft crashed in Xiangkhouang. All passengers on board, including a senior Vietnamese general, were killed. |