Military

DATE=2/5/05

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=AFGHAN PLANE (S/L)

NUMBER=2-322322

BYLINE=MICHAEL KITCHEN

DATELINE=ISLAMABAD

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

HEADLINE: Missing Afghan Passenger Jet Found Crashed in Mountains

INTRO: Afghan and foreign troops have found the wreckage of a passenger plane missing since Thursday. Authorities say there are no signs of any survivors. VOA's Michael Kitchen reports from Islamabad.

TEXT: Afghan interior ministry spokesman Latfullah Mashal said Saturday the Kam Air Boeing 737 went down just outside the capital Kabul, where it had been trying to land.

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"The debris of the plane was found around 25 kilometers east of Kabul in a mountainous area called Band-e Ghazi."

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One hundred and four people are reported to have been on board the flight when it went down. Most were Afghans, but about 20 foreigners were aboard, including several members of the eight-person crew.

The aircraft had been en route to Kabul from the western city of Herat, but was diverted from the Kabul airport because of heavy snow.

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The plane had sought clearance to land across the border in Peshawar, Pakistan, before it lost contact with air control.

Mr. Mashal says the plane broke up on impact.

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"The plane is completely destroyed, turned into wreckage, and most of the parts of the plane are covered with snow."

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Snow and fog had slowed the search for the plane, but helicopters flown by NATO peacekeeping troops found the crash site Saturday. Mr. Mashal says Afghan police and units from Afghanistan's foreign peacekeeping force are investigating the scene of the crash.

Kam Air is a privately owned Afghan airline. (SIGNED)

NEB/HK/MK/KPD/KL