The plane crashed into a cube. More than a hundred people in Cuba died in a plane crash

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A passenger plane crashed in Cuba. Onboard there were 104 passengers and six crew members.

The cause of the plane crash is still unknown, the Cuban authorities announced the beginning of an investigation.

There is no official data on the victims and injured so far, but the media claim that at least three people survived, they are in critical condition.

The Cuban authorities have declared national mourning in connection with the plane crash.

A Boeing 737 of Cubana de Aviacion, a state-owned Cuban airline, which took off from Havana airport, crashed shortly after takeoff. He was heading to the city of Holguin in the east of the island.

Among the passengers were mostly Cubans, only five were foreign nationals, the state portal Cubadebate reported.

What was seen from the ground

Eyewitnesses say they saw flames that engulfed the plane before falling.

“We heard an explosion and then saw a huge cloud of black smoke rising over the place where the plane crashed,” said local restaurateur Gilberto Menendez.

The Mexican Transport Authority said in a statement that there was a technical malfunction on board the plane during takeoff.

The American corporation Boeing announced that it is ready to send a group of its experts to Cuba, which is not prohibited by American law. Such a group will be led by the US Transportation Security Administration and the Cuban authorities.

The American embargo, imposed under President John F. Kennedy, continues to operate against Cuba.

"There was a plane crash. The news is not encouraging, apparently, there are a large number of victims," ​​- tweeted the head of Cuba, Miguel Diaz-Canel, who arrived at the scene.

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The plane belonged to the Mexican company Aerolineas Damoj, while the Cuban company Cubana de Aviacion was on lease, the Mexican government said in a statement.

The aircraft was built in 1979 with six Mexican crew members on board, including the commander and co-pilot.

Boeing has already announced that it is ready to send a team of specialists to help the Cuban authorities.

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"I saw him take off," supermarket employee Jose Luis told Agence France Presse. "Suddenly, he made a turn and began to fall. We were all amazed."

Local radio tweeted that the plane crashed on the road between Havana and Boyeros, 20 kilometers south of the capital.

Last year was named the safest in the history of commercial transportation, according to the results of the Aviation Safety Network study - no crashes were recorded passenger aircraft.

However, this year there have already been several serious aviation accidents... Last month in Algeria, a military plane crashed shortly after takeoff, killing 257 people.

MEXICO, May 19- RIA News. More than a hundred people were killed in the crash of a Boeing 737-200 in Cuba, which happened on Friday shortly after the liner took off from Havana airport.

According to the Mexican company Global Air, from which Cubana de Aviacion rented the plane, there were 110 people on board, including 104 passengers and six crew members. Among the passengers of the crashed plane were five foreigners, the rest were Cubans, the crew was from Mexico. Russian citizens, according to the embassy, ​​were not on board. Later it became known about the two Argentines killed.

The liner on the Havana-Holguin flight crashed shortly after takeoff, crashing between José Martí Airport and the Havana suburb of Santiago de las Vegas, in the agricultural landings.

There are survivors

Shortly after the crash, local media reported four survivors of the crash. The three surviving women were taken to the intensive care unit of the Calixto Garcia Hospital in Havana in serious condition, the man died on the way to the hospital. Later, Cuba TV reported the death of one of the women, but then denied this information.

The victims have multiple fractures, hematomas and burns, they are assisted by resuscitators, surgeons, neurologists, orthopedists and other specialists.

According to the Mexican Ministry of Transport, the plane was 39 years old, it was released in 1979, but it had all the necessary work permits.

The Chairman of the State Council and the Council of Ministers of Cuba, Miguel Diaz-Canel, said that an investigation would be carried out into the circumstances of the crash, and expressed condolences to the relatives of the victims. No black boxes have been found yet.

All terminals at Havana Jose Marti Airport continue to operate.

© Ruptly

Eyewitness accounts

Eyewitnesses told Cuban TV that the plane tried to return to the airport after takeoff, but crashed into power lines. Witnesses also said that the first rescuers arrived at the scene 12 minutes after the fall.

The crash was the first for the Cubana de Aviacion company since 1999, follows from the data of the portal Aviation Safety Network (ASN), which tracks aviation accidents.

International reaction

Vladimir Putin sent a telegram of condolences to Diaz-Canel. "The head of the Russian state conveyed words of sympathy and support to the families and friends of the victims, as well as wishes for a speedy recovery to those who managed to survive in this catastrophe," the telegram says.

Condolences were sent by Venezuela, Spain, Mexico, France. Boeing also expressed condolences to the loved ones of the passengers and crew of the crashed plane, as well as willingness to provide the necessary technical assistance.

As the press service of the State Department told RIA Novosti, the United States is studying information about the crash of a Boeing-737 plane in Cuba and finding out whether there were American citizens on board. Canada said it is working to obtain additional information and, if necessary, is ready to provide consular assistance to Canadian citizens.

The Cuban authorities declared mourning in connection with the plane crash.

Declared official mourning in the country for the next two days due to the plane crash that occurred on the afternoon of May 18 in Havana. On Friday around noon, a Boeing 737-200 plane crashed immediately after takeoff from international airport named after Jose Martí. There were 104 passengers and six crew members on board. According to the flight engineer, a technical failure could have been the cause of the crash.

The Council of State of Cuba has declared official mourning in the country for the next two days due to the plane crash that occurred in the afternoon of May 18 in Havana. On Friday around noon, a Boeing 737-200 plane crashed immediately after takeoff from Jose Marti International Airport, FAN reports.

There were 104 passengers and six crew members on board (110 people in total). Flight DMJ 0972 was heading from Havana to Holguín province, Cuba Debate reports.

According to Cuban media reports, the plane was leased by Cubana de Aviación from the Mexican airline Damojh and piloted by a foreign crew. It is known that one of the women who survived the crash died in the hospital. Two other victims are in serious condition in the intensive care unit.

Before the crash, witnesses said the plane turned to return to the airport and crashed into power lines.

As noted, the first rescuers arrived at the scene 12 minutes after the fall. The first footage from the crash site of a passenger airliner appeared on the Web. The video captures the first footage after the disaster. The footage shows a column of black smoke that rises above the crash site near the airstrip at Havana airport.

There were no Russian citizens aboard the plane that crashed near Havana, NSN reports with reference to the Russian Embassy in Cuba. It is known that among the dead there are two citizens of Argentina.

“The ministry is saddened to report that two Argentine citizens died today in Havana in a plane crash of a commercial passenger plane that crashed on takeoff from the airport,” the country's Foreign Ministry said.

The flight engineer who serviced the flight, which took off a few minutes earlier than the plane that crashed on Friday near Havana, believes that the cause of the crash could be a technical failure, RIA Novosti reports.

“Today (Friday), at about 11 am, we, the members of the two crews, met in the office of the terminal (Havana airport) for lunch and exchange a few words before the flight.

We will never meet like that again - most likely, due to a technical failure in the aircraft, ”the specialist said.

“I know you must be in a lot of pain. Imagine the pain I feel, a 17-year flight engineer, colleague and friend of the crew of the (crashed) Boeing 737-200. 13 minutes before its fall, our crew, which was carrying out another domestic flight airline Cubana, flew to the province of Santiago de Cuba. We communicated with them by radio, taxiing on runway… ", - explained the flight engineer.

UPD 23:00 All passengers and crew members of the plane that crashed near the capital of Cuba are foreign citizens. The site of the Cuban newspaper "Granma" informs about it. According to her, there were a total of 105 people on board, including five children. Earlier, there were data on 113 passengers and crew members. Meanwhile, several people survived the crash. However, according to Reuters, one of them has already died from burns in the hospital. Two more victims remain in the hospital in serious condition. The Boeing was leased by a Cuban airline from a Mexican carrier and piloted by a foreign crew. The plane was on a domestic flight to the east of Cuba. After takeoff, the ship crashed into an agricultural field near the first terminal of the airport. Jose Marty.

A Boeing 737 of a local airline crashed on takeoff at the Havana airport. The death toll is still unknown, but the Cuban authorities have already warned that it is likely that there are numerous victims.

For unclear reasons, the plane crashed to the ground almost immediately after takeoff from Jose Marti airport in Havana. The aircraft was heading to the city of Holguín in the east of Cuba. The Boeing was leased by Cubana de Aviacion from the Mexican Damojh and piloted by a foreign crew.

According to various sources, there were 104 or 107 passengers and crew on board. There are survivors of the crash - locals told The Associated Press that they saw the victims being transported in ambulances. Rescue services are working at the scene of the tragedy; the leader of the country, Miguel Diaz Canel, also arrived there.

The Russian Consulate General is investigating whether there were citizens of our country on board the plane.


Cuban leader Miguel Diaz-Canel


Photo AFP

In Cuba, the reasons for the crash of the Boeing 737 are being investigated. The night before, it crashed almost immediately after takeoff from Havana airport. At this moment, it is known that there were 110 people on board, only three women managed to survive, but they are in extremely serious condition. According to the latest data, there are no Russians among the victims of the plane crash.

These shots were taken in the first seconds after the tragedy. Visitors and staff at Jose Marti Airport stare in horror at the flames and the giant plume of smoke rising just a few kilometers from the runway.

“We were checking in when we heard the sound of an explosion. At that moment, the lights went out in the hall, we looked out into the street and saw clouds of black smoke. Then we were told that the plane crashed, ”said Brian Oranbueno.

The crashed Boeing 737, built 39 years ago, was operated by Cubana de Aviación, a Cuban national carrier, which rented a plane from the Mexican airline Global Air. At noon local time, the liner departed from the capital's Jose Marti Airport to the city of Holguín in the east of the country. Minutes later, it became known that the Boeing fell and crashed in the countryside near the Havana suburb of Santiago de las Vegas.

Eyewitnesses said that immediately after takeoff, the airliner turned towards the airport and allegedly began to land, but crashed into a power line support. None of the residential buildings were damaged.

“He flew low, as if he could not gain altitude. Then he began to turn back. And at that moment, the wing touched the wires and immediately fell to the ground, ”said an eyewitness.

According to the latest data, there were 104 passengers on board, including five children, and a crew of six. Only four managed to survive. However, later one of them, a man, died in hospital. Three more women - with burns and fractures - remain in critical condition.

"We are doing everything possible. Now it is difficult to say something more specific - the injuries of the victims are very serious, ”said the head physician of the hospital, Carlos Alberto Martinez Blanco.

A few hours after the disaster, it turned out that among the dead were two Argentine citizens. Before that, it was reported that only Mexicans - the ship's crew - were foreigners.

Our embassy in Havana reported that the Russians did not take this flight.

“Immediately after receiving information about the disaster, Russian diplomats left for Havana's Jose Marti airport. According to the latest information received from the official Cuban authorities, there were no Russian citizens on board the plane, ”said Nadezhda Sergieva, press secretary of the Russian Consulate General in Cuba.

Search operations in the area of ​​the Boeing crash, despite the onset of darkness, do not stop. Teams of doctors and rescuers, who, according to eyewitnesses, arrived at the scene just 12 minutes after the tragedy, continue to search for the remains of the victims of the disaster and collect the wreckage of the liner. At the airport itself, psychologists provide assistance to the relatives of the victims who lost their loved ones overnight.

At this point, the most likely cause of the accident is a technical failure. The Cuban authorities have not yet been able to report anything more specific - the "black boxes" have not yet been found.

“On behalf of the government and the party, I express my deep condolences to the families and friends of those killed in this terrible disaster. We do whatever is necessary in such situations. Doctors have begun to identify the remains of the victims, an investigation has begun into the causes of the incident. As soon as we manage to find out something, we will inform about it ”, - said the Chairman of the State Council and the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Cuba, Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez.

In connection with the tragedy in Cuba, two days of mourning have been declared. Leaders of dozens of countries expressed their condolences to the government and the Cuban people. President Vladimir Putin sent a telegram with words of sympathy and support to the families and friends of the victims and wishing a speedy recovery to those who survived the disaster.

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