Vietnam: Malaysia aircraft crashed in South China Sea

A Malaysia Airlines passenger plane with 239 people on board has crashed in the South China Sea, Vietnamese state media say.

On Saturday, Vietnam’s Tuoi Tre news quoted Admiral Ngo Van Phat, a senior naval official, as saying that he had asked boats from an island off the south coast of Vietnam to go to the site where the Boeing 777-200 went down.

Malaysia Airlines has not confirmed the crash report.

The aircraft, which was traveling from the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, to Beijing lost contact with Malaysian air traffic control two hours into the flight at 2:40 a.m. local time on Saturday (1840 GMT Friday) 120 nautical miles (140 miles; 225 kilometers) off the east coast of the Malaysian town of Kota Bharu, according to Malaysia Airlines chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahya.

The plane was due to land in Beijing at 6:30 a.m. Saturday (2230 GMT Friday).

Malaysia and Vietnam have launched a joint search and rescue operation, Yahya added.

China has also dispatched two maritime rescue ships to the South China Sea to assist in rescue operations.

Over 150 passengers of the Malaysian plane are from China.

The loss marks the second deadly accident involving a Boeing 777 in less than a year.

In July 2013, an Asiana Airlines Boeing 777-200 crash-landed in San Francisco. Three passengers died and over 180 others were injured.