160 die in plane crash after possible engine trouble
The West Caribbean Airways plane was headed from Panama to Martinique when its pilot reported trouble with both engines to the Caracas air control tower just after 7am (3am local time), said Francisco Paz, president of the National Aviation Institute.
Airport authorities lost radio contact with the plane roughly 10 minutes later in the area of Machiques, 400 miles west of Caracas in the western border state of Zulia, he said. Interior Minister Jesse Chacon said military helicopters and planes flying over the area indicated “it’s very unlikely there could be survivors”.
