Ethiopian Airlines plane crashes on way to Nairobi

An Ethiopian Airlines flight with 157 people on board has crashed on its way to Nairobi, with deaths being reported, the Ethiopian prime minister’s office said.

The plane, carrying 149 passengers and eight crew members, crashed six minutes after take-off from Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa.

A statement from the airline on Sunday morning said the Boeing 737 crashed around Bishoftu, or Debre Zeit, some 50 kilometers (31 miles) south of the capital, shortly after taking off at 8:38 a.m. local time.

The airline statement said “search and rescue operations are in progress and we have no confirmed information about survivors or any possible casualties.”

The Ethiopian prime minister’s office in a separate, earlier statement offered condolences to families.

The state-owned Ethiopian Airlines calls itself Africa’s largest carrier and has ambitions of becoming the gateway to the continent. iTV.