Ethiopian airliner crashes in Mediterranean Sea

An Ethiopian Airliner with 92 passengers and crew on board has crashed into the Mediterranean Sea shortly after takeoff from Beirut airport in Lebanon.

Aviation sources said flight 409 was heading for the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa when it crashed at 2:30 a.m. (1230 GMT) on Monday.

According to Lebanon’s Transport Minister Ghazi Aridi, the Boeing 737-800 disappeared from radar screens only five minutes after takeoff amid heavy rains and storms, and crashed into the sea about 12km (7 miles) south of the Rafiq Hariri airport.

Witnesses who live near the coast have reported seeing a ball of fire as the airliner plunged into the sea.

The passengers include 54 Lebanese, 22 Ethiopians, one Iraqi, a French woman, a Syrian and seven crew members.

Several dual nationals including two British-Lebanese, one Canadian-Lebanese and a Russian-Lebanese were also on board the jet, Aridi added.

The French woman has been identified as the wife of France’s ambassador to Lebanon, AFP reported airport officials as saying.

Rescue efforts to save possible survivors have been launched.

“We have contacted everyone, inside and outside the country, that can assist us and the Lebanese navy, the army and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) have joined in the rescue,” the minister said.

The Boeing 737-800, which entered into commercial service in 1998, is one of the latest versions of the world’s most widely used short to medium-haul airliners, and is capable of carrying up to 189 passengers.