The military aircraft, operated by the Algerian Air Force, carrying soldiers and their families crashed soon after takeoff in northern Algeria, killing 257 people in what appears to be the worst plane crash in the north African country’s history. The 247 passengers, made up of Algerian soldiers and their relatives, died along with 10 crew members when the plane crashed into a field yesterday. The crash, which happened around 7.50am local time, happened next to an airbase in the town of Boufarik 30klms (20 miles) from the capital Algiers. The cause of the crash was unclear and an investigation had been launched. The head of the Algerian army, the vice-minister of defence, and military chief of staff visited the crash site to inspect the wreckage. The aircraft that crashed on Wednesday was a Russian-built Ilyushin Il-76 military transport plane. Several witnesses said they saw flames coming out of one of the planes' engines just before it took off. They went on to say it climbed briefly before rolling to its side and crashing to the ground wing first. The Il-76 has been involved in a number of crashes, most recently in 2016 when one on a firefighting mission crashed near Lake Baikal in north-east Siberia, killing all 10 crew members on board.
It is the deadliest plane crash since Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine in July 2014, killing all 298 people on board.
There were 938 Ilyushin -76's built and this is the 80th accident involving this aircraft model.
There were 938 Ilyushin -76's built and this is the 80th accident involving this aircraft model.
Aircraft Information
Aircraft: Ilyushin Il-76
Engines: 4 Soloviev D-30KP Turbofans
Operator: Algerian Air Force
Flight Number:
Registration: 7T-WIV
Serial Number: 1043419649
Test Registration:
First Flew:
Age:
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