2 Die In Plane Crash In Myanmar, Plane Bursts Into Flames On Christmas Day
At least two were reported dead along with 11 injured following a plane crash in central Myanmar on Tuesday, officials said.
The Air Bagan flight crash-landed on Christmas Day with 71 people on board including 48 foreign passengers, MSN reported. The plane was going from the city of Mandalay to Heho airport.
The Information Ministry initially said three Myanmar citizens died: a tour guide, an 11-year-old child on board and a man riding a motorcycle on the road where the plane came down. However, the airline, Air Bagan, said in a statement Tuesday evening that only two died. As for what caused the crash, Air Bagan said, "the plane hit electrical cables about a mile from Heho airport as it descended and landed in rice fields." It said the plane burst into flames two minutes after the passengers were safely evacuated.
MSN noted that authorities said the pilot mistook the road for a airplane runway due to bad weather.
"While descending, the plane mistakenly landed ... due to fog beside the runway," state television reported, adding that "the rear end of the plane broke and caught fire."
Based on the conflicted reports, it is unclear of the plane crash-landed on the road or the in the rice field.
The airline lodged survivors of the plane crash at Yangon hotel after evacuating them from the scene. One couple relayed details of Tuesday's events to The Washington Times the following day.
"We felt the first bump, then a few big bumps and then (started) sliding very fast," said 31-year-old Australian advertising executive Anna Bartsch. "In my window I saw the flames, and it was hot and we knew straight away we didn't have much time to get out."
Her boyfriend, Stuart Benson, described the landing as "a roller coaster" ride. The plane's front door was initially stuck shut but after forced open, passengers and crew ran far from the plane before it burst into flames.
