SHARJAH -- A Russian-built Ilyushin 76 cargo plane that took off from Sharjah crashed near Sudanese capital Khartoum yesterday, killing all aboard -- six Russian crew members and one Sudanese airline official.
The Sudanese Air West Cargo airline's plane that flew out of Sharjah at 3:30am met with the accident some 50km from Khartoum at 9am.
The plane was scheduled to land at Khartoum before flying to Nyala, the capital of South Darfur state in the far west Sudan, Awad Mahjoob, the commercial manager of Air West Cargo told Khaleej Times by phone from Khartoum.
Mahjoob said that the pilot had established contact with the Khartoum control tower at 8am as the aircraft had developed problems with the fuel system.
"The pilot was advised to make an emergency landing at Aad Babaker, about 15km west of Khartoum. The aircraft should have landed at 8.15am, however, it crashed into a large ravine in the desert," he said.
The crash occurred in an uninhabited area.
When the rescue teams reached the accident site, the bodies of the pilot and co-pilot were seen strapped to their seats. "They weren't burned. The rest of the victims -- the four Russian crew and one Sudanese airline official -- were pulled out from under the huge heap of cargo."
Mahjoob said that the plane was not carrying aid, but commercial cargo such as mobile phones, clothes and other items. The plane, which had a capacity of 50 tonnes, was carrying 46 tonnes of cargo from Sharjah to Khartoum.
"The civil aviation officials are searching for the black box. Arrangements are now being made with the Russian embassy in Khartoum for the repatriation of the crew's remains to Dubai for onward transport to Russia," he said.
The crew members were identified as Yuri, Yuslaf, Zenali, Kikitur, Sergie and Valerie, while the Sudanese official's name was given as Fares.
Mahjoob said that the cargo plane had been in operation since 1991 and had never met with an accident. It is owned by Captain Saif Marzouq Saad Omar and its maintenance base is Sharjah. Its usual flight route includes Frankfurt, Europe and Istanbul as well as in Nyala, Fashir and Juba in Sudan.
Meanwhile, Sharjah airport officials, when contacted, declined to divulge any information about the flight operations of the Sudanese cargo plane at the Sharjah International Airport as well as the air accident.
By Amira Agarib and Ramona Ruiz
© Khaleej Times 2005
