Two hundred and fifty seven dead as massive military transport plane as big as a Boeing 737 crashes in Algeria

  • Military plane carrying up to 200 people crash near Algiers, Algeria
  • A provisional total of 181 passengers and crew perished in the crash Wednesday
  • The plane crashed soon after taking off from a military airbase
  • Survivors suffered terrible burns from the plane catching fire after the crash

More than 250 people died in a plane crash near a military airbase in Algeria, officials confirmed.

An Algerian civil protection agency spokesman said the 'provisional' death toll from the crash on Wednesday is 257, but some survivors were rescued.

The military plane went down soon after taking off from the air base in Boufarik, some 20 miles from the capital Algiers on Wednesday morning.  

State media reported the Soviet-designed Ilyushin Il-76 plane was headed for Bechar in southwest Algeria, and the cause of the crash remained unclear.

Rescuers are seen around the wreckage of an Algerian army plane which crashed near the Boufarik airbase from where the plane had taken off

Rescuers are seen around the wreckage of an Algerian army plane which crashed near the Boufarik airbase from where the plane had taken off

More than 300 emergency workers were at the crash site in Algeria dragging bodies out of the wreckage and looking for survivors

More than 300 emergency workers were at the crash site in Algeria dragging bodies out of the wreckage and looking for survivors

State media reported the Soviet-designed Ilyushin Il-76 plane was headed for Bechar in southwest Algeria, and the cause of the crash remained unclear

State media reported the Soviet-designed Ilyushin Il-76 plane was headed for Bechar in southwest Algeria, and the cause of the crash remained unclear

Television footage showed black smoke billowing near a motorway and a crowd of security officials and others standing in a field next to the crash site.

The tail fin of a plane could be seen above olive trees, with smoke and flames rising from the wreckage. 

'There are more than 100 deaths. We can't say exact how many at this point,' said Mohammed Achour, chief spokesman for the civil protection agency, adding that the plane was carrying soldiers.

Mr Achour added that some passengers were 'extracted with deep burns caused by the fuselage catching fire.'

Bodybags are pictured at the scene. The military plane went down soon after taking off from the air base in Boufarik, some 20 miles from the capital Algiers on Wednesday morning

Bodybags are pictured at the scene. The military plane went down soon after taking off from the air base in Boufarik, some 20 miles from the capital Algiers on Wednesday morning

Firefighters and civil security officers work at the scene of a fatal military plane crash

Firefighters and civil security officers work at the scene of a fatal military plane crash

Images from social media shows smoke coming from the crash site  near Algiers

Images from social media shows smoke coming from the crash site  near Algiers

More than 250 people died in a plane crash near a military airbase in Algeria, officials confirmed 

More than 250 people died in a plane crash near a military airbase in Algeria, officials confirmed 

An Algerian civil protection agency spokesman said the 'provisional' death toll from the crash on Wednesday is 257, but some survivors were rescued 

An Algerian civil protection agency spokesman said the 'provisional' death toll from the crash on Wednesday is 257, but some survivors were rescued 

More than 300 emergency workers were at the crash site dragging bodies out of the wreckage and looking for survivors.

A member of Algeria's ruling FLN party told the private Ennahar TV station the dead included 26 members of Algerian-backed militant group Polisario.

The group is fighting for the independence of neighbouring Western Sahara, a territory also claimed by Morocco in a long-running dispute.

The Algerian Defence Ministry has launched an investigation into the incident, and has expressed condolences to the victims' families. 

The Ilyushin Il-76 is 153ft long - compared to a Boeing 737 which is just over 110ft - and is designed to carry military cargo.

It can carry between 125 and 140 passengers, depending on equipment, with a crew of seven, but due to the high casualty figures, the plane would have had to carry people in the cargo area.

Plane down: An Ilyushin Il-76 transport aircraft of the Belarusian air force leading L-39 Albatrosses of the Belaya Rus Jet Team  in Minsk, Belarus in 2017

Plane down: An Ilyushin Il-76 transport aircraft of the Belarusian air force leading L-39 Albatrosses of the Belaya Rus Jet Team in Minsk, Belarus in 2017

Big flight: An Ilyushin-76 is seen during a demonstrating flight at Moscow's International airshow, Moscow, Russia in 2001

Big flight: An Ilyushin-76 is seen during a demonstrating flight at Moscow's International airshow, Moscow, Russia in 2001

This is the third airplane accident with high number of casualties in Algeria in recent years.

In February 2014, 77 people died when a military plane carrying army personnel and family members crashed between Tamanrasset in southern Algeria and the eastern city of Constantine.

The C-130 Hercules transport aircraft came down in the mountainous Oum El Bouaghi region.

In July 2014 an Air Algerie passenger plane flying from Burkina Faso to Algiers crashed in northern Mali, killing all 116 people on board including 54 French nationals. 

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