20 die when airliner crashes in fog

A small airliner crashed in thick fog and burst into flames as it made its final approach to a Luxembourg airport today, killing 20 of the 22 passengers and crew on board.

Screams could be heard from inside the burning wreckage after the Luxair flight from Berlin crashed in a field near a main road close to the village of Niederanven.

Nineteen passengers and three crew members were on board the plane. Two people, including the pilot, survived the crash and were in critical condition in hospitals in Luxembourg.

Rescue workers took several hours to free the pilot who was trapped in the cockpit. The plane carried 15 Germans, two French nationals and five Luxembourgers, including the crew.

The Fokker 50 twin-engine turboprop was on a scheduled flight from Berlin-Tempelhof to Luxembourg’s Findel airport and making its final approach when it crashed, airline officials said.

It was at about 1,800 feet when it suddenly disappeared from the traffic controllers’ screens.

Luxair said the plane had been in service since 1991. It was the first plane crash in the airline’s 54 year history.

“This is a black day in the history of Luxair,” said airline chief Christian Heinzmann. It was Luxembourg’s worst air disaster. “We still have no cause for the crash,”.

Luxembourg Transport Minister Henri Grethen suggested that the autumn fog shrouding the damp countryside could have been a factor. “The plane was approaching the airport under poor conditions,” he said.

He said the control tower had received no distress signals before it lost contact. “The last contact was absolutely normal,” Grethen said, adding the crew had already received authorisation to land, despite the fog.

“It’s strange, it was really close to us but we saw nothing, heard nothing, it must have been because of the fog, it was so thick,” said Charlotte Reisdorf, who works near the crash site.

“It was only when we starting hearing the ambulances and the fire services arriving that we realised what was happening,” added Reisdorf.

The area where the plane crashed north-east of Luxembourg city is one of gently rolling hills covered with woods and farmland. Early morning fog in Luxembourg is a common occurrence in November.