Turkish cargo plane from Hong Kong crash lands on Kyrgyzstan homes

A Turkish cargo plane from Hong Kong has crashed in Kyrgyzstan, killing at least 32 people, most of them on the ground, say officials.

The Boeing 747 crashed into homes near Manas airport, about 25km (15 miles) north of the capital, Bishkek, the Kyrgyz government said.

At least 15 buildings were damaged and a number of children are reported to have been among those killed.

The flight was making a stopover in Manas en route to Istanbul in Turkey.

The Kyrgyz government said the plane was being operated by Turkish Airlines.

But the airline said the plane belonged to Turkish carrier ACT, also known as My Cargo Airlines.

“Our condolences to the families of those who have lost their lives in the tragic incident involving an ACT Airlines aircraft in Kyrgyzstan,” Turkish Airline said on its Twitter account.

Destroyed houses

The plane came down shortly after 07:30 local time (01:30 GMT) in the village of Dacha-Suu, a popular holiday home area.

Visibility was poor at the time because of freezing fog, but the cause of the crash has not yet been confirmed.

Images on social media purporting to be of the crash site show fire and smoke rising from the rubble of destroyed buildings.

There are reports that one crew member survived. A number of people have also been taken to hospitals with injuries.

Emergency services are at the scene. Local media is reporting that Prime Minister Sooronbai Jeenbekov is also there.

Manas airport, the country’s main international airport, has been closed.

In 2008, a passenger plane bound for Iran crashed shortly after take-off from Manas, killing 68 people.

BBC