A cargo plane transporting 11 tons of military ammunition and other explosives from Serbia crashed in northern Greece, triggering warnings to nearby residents they could be exposed to dangerous fumes.
All eight crew members on board the Antonov An-12 died when the Soviet-designed aircraft went down near the city of Kavala on Saturday night, officials in Greece and Serbia said on Sunday.
Serbian Defense Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic said the cargo had been loaded on the plane at Nis airport on Saturday evening. The plane then set off for Bangladesh, with planned stopovers in Jordan and Saudi Arabia, he was quoted by the ANA news agency as saying.
Over the northern Aegean Sea, the pilot had reported problems with the engine and requested an emergency landing. However, the plane did not make it to the closest airport in Kavala, Greece, Stefanovic said.
It crashed into a field near two villages, narrowly missing houses and apparently destroyed electricity pylons when it went down.
Mobile phone pictures taken by residents showed the plane on fire in the night sky before impact. Explosions could be heard at the site hours after the crash.
The debris was scattered across a radius of hundreds of metres and the area was cordoned off, according to Greek state broadcaster ERT.
Residents living nearby were told by the Greek Civil Protection to keep their windows closed and not to turn on their air conditioning.
A firefighter told ERT that two colleagues had been taken to hospital with breathing difficulties.
Jordan denied early reports that the Middle East monarchy was the final destination of the plane.
The plane was scheduled to make a stopover on Saturday night for refuelling at Queen Alia International Airport in the capital Amman before resuming its flight, Jordan’s state news agency Petra reported, citing an official source at the Jordanian civil aviation authority.
