Officials say hundreds feared killed in airline collision over India
November 12, 1996
Web posted at: 5:40 p.m. EST (1815 GMT)
In this story:
NEW DELHI, India (CNN) -- A Saudi Airways Boeing 747 jetliner
collided in flight with a Kazakh Airways Ilyushin 76 airliner
Tuesday west of New Delhi just as darkness fell, according to officials
in India. As many as 300 people are feared dead.
There was no official confirmation of casualties. But the two planes
were reported to have been carrying at least 300 people.
Indian News agencies reported about 200 charred bodies, many still burning, were
seen at the crash site. The planes crashed near Dadri, a town of 50,000 people about
100 kilometers (60 miles) west of the Indian capital, police
said.
Four hours after the accident, only four or five bodies had
been recovered and brought to a hospital, police said.
The Saudi plane was bound for Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. Saudi Airways Flight 763 had just taken off
from Indira Gandhi International airport at dusk when it hit
the Kazakh plane which was making a landing approach.
Kazakh Airways flight 1907 from Chimkemb, Kazahkstan was approaching the airport for landing, Indian authorities said.
The Saudi jet had just been asked to climb to 14,000 feet
while the Kazakh jet had been asked to descend to 15,000 feet
when the accident occurred at 6:40 p.m. The Saudi jet had
been in the air seven minutes, officials said.
Map of flight path
The early evening collision was witnessed by the pilot of a
U.S. military plane bringing supplies to the U.S. Embassy in
New Delhi, Pentagon officials told CNN.
Building contractor Rao Singh witnessed the crash: "I saw
fireballs and big black smoke about three or four kilometers
from my house falling into the fields," he said. Singh said
villagers told him bodies were being brought to a hospital in
Dadri.
New Delhi Bureau Chief Anita Pratap, Correspondent Jamie
McIntyre and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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