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Dozens Dead After Turkish Cargo Jet Crashes Into Kyrgyzstan Village

Most of the dead are residents of the village struck by the plane as it tried to land in dense fog.

BISHKEK (Reuters) - A Turkish cargo jet crashed near Kyrgyzstan's Manas airport on Monday, killing at least 30 people, most of them residents of a village struck by the Boeing 747 as it tried to land in dense fog, Kyrgyz officials said.

According to the airport administration, the plane was supposed to make a stopover at Manas, near the capital city Bishkek, on its way from Hong Kong to Istanbul. It crashed when trying to land in poor visibility at 7:31 a.m. (0131 GMT).

Rescue teams have reached the crash site of a Turkish cargo jet near Kyrgyzstan's Manas airport.
Vladimir Pirogov / Reuters
Rescue teams have reached the crash site of a Turkish cargo jet near Kyrgyzstan's Manas airport.

The doomed plane damaged 15 buildings in the village, said Mukhammed Svarov, head of crisis management center at the emergencies ministry, adding that at least 30 people had been killed.

Kyrgyzstan's transport ministry said there were five people on board. It identified the plane as a Turkish Airlines Boeing 747-400, but the company said it belonged to another Turkish firm, ACT Airlines.