An Ethiopian Airlines plane has crashed killing 149 passengers and 8 crew onboard, just minutes after take-off. The plane heading to Na...
An Ethiopian Airlines plane has crashed killing 149 passengers and 8 crew onboard, just minutes after take-off.
The plane heading to Nairobi left Ethiopia this morning but came down within six minutes - 37 miles from Addis Ababa International Airport.
Seven British nationals were onboard the plane at the time, while there were eighteen Canadians, eight Americans and 32 Kenyan nationals.
The crash is believed to have happened near Bishoftu, Ethiopia, 60 kilometers south of the capital. A witness told the BBC it took rescuers until 11am to arrive.
Bekele Gutema said: 'The blast and the fire were so strong that we couldn't get near it. Everything is burnt down.'
Speaking at a press conference CEO of Ethiopian Airlines Tewolde Gebremariam said the captain of the crashed plane had told controllers at Bole airport that he was having difficulty and wanted to return.
He said he had been given clearance.
Family members of the victims involved in a plane crash react at Addis Ababa international airport Sunday, hours after their loves ones took off
Ethiopia Airlines group CEO, Mr Tewolde Gebremariam, who is pictured at the accident scene. Firefighters spent hours trying to get to the scene
Pictures from the wreckage show people's shoes and burned bags scattered across the ground after the crash in Ethiopia
Rescue team collect bodies in bags at the crash site of Ethiopia Airlines near Bishoftu, a town some 60 kilometres southeast of Addis Ababa
Debris from the plane is strewn around the area while locals comb the area for any signs of survival from the crash
After the news all onboard had died families cried and talked on the phone at the airport. Families have said they are being told nothing about what has happened
A woman reacts as she waits for the updated flight information of Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET 302, where her fiance was onboard at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi, Kenya
Family members arrive at Bole International airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, after hearing news of the crash
The Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 went down within six minutes of take-off this morning (pictured: stock image)
The plane, a 737 MAX 8, is believed to be a new addition to the EA fleet having been delivered in July last year - and is the same model as the Lion Air plane which crashed in Indonesia in October.
Boeing issued a safety warning last November about its new 737 Max jets which could have a fault that causes them to nose-dive. The MAX-8 planes were launched in 2016 and are used by major airlines all around the world.
While it remains unclear what happened onboard, there was a an urgent investigation called in Indonesia in November 2018 - calling for all MAX jets to be inspected after the crash.
Boeing said it is 'monitoring' developments in Ethiopia.
Relatives in Nairobi have said they have not been told anything - and that they only heard about the crash on Facebook - despite being at the airport waiting for loved ones.
Wendy Otieno told Reuters: 'We're just waiting for my mum. We're just hoping she took a different flight or was delayed. She's not picking up her phone.'
Peter Kimani told AFP as he sat in the arrivals lounge he was waiting for his sister who had been on a mission to the Congo as a nurse.
'I am still hoping that all is fine, because I have been waiting for my sister since morning and we have not been told anything,' he said.
A spokesman for the airline confirmed the plane had crashed while heading from Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa. It was due to land at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at around 10.25am.
The airline's statement said: 'At this time search and rescue operations are in progress and we have no information about survivors or any possible casualties.'
One woman was seen in tears this morning as she waited for news of her fiancé.
According to Swedish flight-tracking website flightradar24 the flight 'had unstable vertical speed' shortly after take off.
The state-owned Ethiopian Airlines calls itself Africa's largest carrier and has ambitions of becoming the gateway to the continent.
The scene of the crash on rural land in Ethiopia. All people onboard the plane died on Sunday, the airline later confirmed
Ethiopian Airlines Group CEO Tewolde GebreMariam inspects the newly-arrived Boeing 737 Max 8 months before the crash
An Ethiopian Airports fire engine rushes to the scene of the crash on Sunday morning. It took them until 11am to get there
The loved ones of plane passengers heading to Nairobi are waiting for news at the airport although there is 'little' information
The plane had been heading towards Nairobi when it came down in Ethiopia. It was just 31 miles from Addis Ababa Airport
The plane had reportedly travelled for six minutes when it came down to the ground
Ethiopian Airlines hopes to become the most prominent airline on the continent. Pictured: A man looks at his phone outside the Ethiopian Airlines offices in downtown Nairobi, Kenya
Ethiopian Airlines Corporate Communications Director Asrat Begashaw said there were 33 nationalities on board the plane when it crashed. Among the dead are believed to be eight Chinese people.
The Ethiopian prime minister's official Twitter account on Sunday sent condolences to families of those onboard.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's Twitter said: 'The office of the PM, on behalf of government and people of Ethiopia, would like to express it's deepest condolences to the families that have lost their loved ones on Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 on regular scheduled flight to Nairobi, Kenya this morning.'
A Djiboutian national Hiba (L) is comforted by a relative as she waits for details of her loved one that was on board the flight Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi
Passengers wait outside the Bole International airport Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Families returned to the airport to try and get news of the crash
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta offered his 'prayers' to all the families and associates of those on board the plane.
'We are saddened by the news of an Ethiopian Airlines passenger aircraft that is reported to have crashed 6 minutes after takeoff en route to Kenya,' he wrote on Twitter.
Max Kingsley-Jones, group editor of online news site Flight Global, said Ethiopian Airlines has a 'great reputation' in the aviation world.
Speaking to the BBC, he said: 'Ethiopian [Airlines] is really the jewel in the crown for Africa's airlines. In fact, international airlines across the world look up to Ethiopian.
'It's got a fantastic network, it's got a great reputation and it has a fleet to go with that operation.
'It operates long-haul aircraft, all the latest technology... and then on short-haul it's got [Boeing] 737s.'
Flights out of Addis Ababa were delayed or cancelled on Sunday morning, it has been reported.
A control centre phone number is being set up for the loved ones of those who were onboard.
A flight information board displaying the details of Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET 302 is seen at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport
Boeing 737 Max jets investigated after Indonesia plane crash:
Boeing issued a safety warning last November about its new 737 Max jets which could have a fault that causes them to nose-dive.
The special bulletin sent to operators was about a sensor problem flagged by Indonesian safety officials investigating the crash of a Lion Air 737 that killed 189 people just a week before the memo was sent.
Since the 737 Max was unveiled in 2017, 350 of the jets have been bought, with around a further future 4,761 orders placed.
More than 40 airlines around the world use the 737 Max, which has four kinds in the fleet, numbered 7, 8, 9 and 10.
Airlines such as Norwegian Air, Air China, TUI, Air Canada, United Airlines, American Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Icelandair and FlyDubai.
The 8 series, which was involved in the crash in Indonesia, has been flying the longest of all the Maxes.
Boeing said in November that local aviation officials believed pilots may have been given wrong information by the plane's automated systems before the fatal crash.
An AOA sensor provides data about the angle at which wind is passing over the wings and tells pilots how much lift a plane is getting.
According to a technical log the Lion Air plane, which had only been in service a few months, suffered instrument problems the day before because of an 'unreliable' airspeed reading.
The MAX models are relatively new but has already been investigated after problems reported. Pictured: Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 (stock image)
Minutes after takeoff the plane suddenly nose-dived hitting speeds of 600mph before slamming into the sea.
The warning issued today read: 'The Indonesian National Transportation Safety Committee has indicated that Lion Air flight 610 experienced erroneous input from one of its AOA (Angle of Attack) sensors.
'Boeing issued an Operations Manual Bulletin (OMB) directing operators to existing flight crew procedures to address circumstances where there is erroneous input from an AOA sensor.'
As a result of an investigation into the crash the jet manufacturer is said to be preparing a bulletin to be sent to operators of the 737 jets warning about faulty cockpit readings that could cause a dive.
The notice refers to the 'angle of attack', which is the angle of the wing relative to oncoming air stream, a measure that indicates if a plane is likely to stall.
This angle of attack, which is a calculation of the angle at which the wind is passing over the wings, is used to be determined if a stall is imminent.
Inspectors found faults on two other Boeing 737 MAX jets, including one which mirrored a problem reported on board the Lion Air plane.