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Post by Claudette on Aug 16, 2005 19:08:26 GMT
Over the past few days 2 plane crashes have occured. The latest one happened in Venezuela which has killed 152 passengers and 8 crew members.
The MD-82 plane was travelling from Panama to Martinique,when the Air traffic controllers lost contact with the plane, soon after the pilot reported engine problems and requested permission for an emergency landing.
Venezuelan Interior Minister Jesse Chacon said the pilot had asked for authorisation to enter Venezuelan air space and land at Maracaibo airport because of problems with one of the engines.
The pilot then reported that the second engine was also failing and the aircraft began to lose altitude at about 7,000ft (2,100m) a minute over Zulia state.
The plane came down in a mountainous area near the town of Machiques, 836km (520 miles) west of Caracas, between 0300 and 0345 local time (between 0700 and 0745 GMT).
"Residents in the area said they heard an explosion"
Heavy rains and the difficult terrain are reported to be hampering the rescue effort.
West Caribbean Airways was set up in 2000 to provide low-cost flights within Colombia and to the Caribbean region, according to the company website.
This is the second incident this year involving the airline. In March a flight taking off from the Colombian island of Providencia crashed, killing eight people.
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