(ATHENS) A cargo plane crashed on Saturday evening near the town of Paleochori Kavalas, in northern Greece, firefighters said.
Posted at 5:29 p.m.
Updated at 6:01 p.m.
Witnesses saw the plane on fire and heard explosions, Athens News reported.
“At 10:45 p.m. I was startled by the sound of an airplane engine. I got out and saw a plane on fire,” Giorgos Archontopoulos told public television ERT.
According to the local Greek authorities, about fifteen firefighters with seven fire-fighting machines headed for the crash site, but could not approach the device which continued to be shaken by explosions.
According to press reports, the plane was flying between Serbia and Jordan, and had just requested an emergency landing permit at the Greek airport of Kavala, but failed to complete the maneuver in time.
State television ERT said it was a Ukrainian Antonov, and that it was in flames before crashing according to residents of the area who witnessed the scene. The Flightradar24 site specifies that it is an AN-12.
No official information on the number of people on board was available, but still according to ERT, the freighter was carrying eight people and “was dangerous”. Police asked reporters near the crash to put on masks.