Seven feared dead in Canada air crash

Seven crew are feared killed after a cargo jet crashed shortly after take-off from Nova Scotia today.

The Boeing 747, owned by MK Airlines of East Sussex, plunged into a quarry at the end of a runway at Halifax’s main airport .

The fate of the crew was not known, but a spokesman for MK said the situation looked grim.

“I understand from our people on the ground in Halifax that there may be no survivors,” said Steve Anderson. The crew members were from the Britain, South Africa and Zimbabwe, he said.

Initial reports from the scene suggested that the jumbo jet’s tail hit the runway during take-off before crashing into a wooded area near an industrial park in the eastern Canadian city.

The aircraft, which had stopped in Halifax to refuel, was loaded with tractors, lobsters and fish, and was bound for Zaragosa, Spain.

“There was a fire at the aircraft,” said Constable Joe Taplin of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada was assembling a team of investigators in Ottawa, said spokesman John Cottreau.