Lufthansa cargo plane crashes in Saudi Arabia
2 crew injured following flight from Frankfurt
Last Updated: Tuesday, July 27, 2010 | 3:22 PM ET
CBC News
A man is seen standing on top of the wreckage of a Lufthansa cargo plane that caught fire and split in half as it was landing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday. (Associated Press)A Lufthansa cargo plane loaded with 90 tonnes of cargo caught fire, crashed and broke in two as it was landing in the Saudi Arabian capital, Riyadh, injuring two crew members.
The pilot and co-pilot — both German nationals — used emergency chutes to flee the plane that had taken off from Frankfurt, and were taken to a nearby military hospital.
"The plane was close to the airport when it caught fire," Riyadh airport official Fahd al-Hamoud said. "Its engines stopped working, then it crashed and split into two halves."
Damage to the plane was extensive. A team was dispatched from Germany to investigate.
Lufthansa said the plane was built in 1993 and its last technical inspection was 13 months ago.
The MD-11 had been scheduled to leave Riyadh for Hong Kong, with a stop in Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates.
Pictures of the burning jet were shown live on the Arab satellite TV channel Al-Arabiya.
With files from The Associated PressShare Tools
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