Turkish plane crash-lands in Amsterdam, nine killed, 84 injured

At least nine people were killed and more than 80 injured when a Turkish Airways plane broke in three as it crash-landed at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport yesterday, officials and passengers said.

The Boeing 737-800 came down at 0931 GMT in fields about half a kilometre (several hundred metres/yards) short of the main runway, splitting in pieces and coming to rest near homes next to the busy A9 freeway on the outskirts of Amsterdam, the Dutch capital and largest city.

Ambulances and firecrews dashed to the crash at Europe's fifth busiest airport, and soon found themselves filling body bags, according to reporters at the scene. Six of the injured were in a critical condition, officials said. The local mayor told a press conference that nine people were known to have died - including three among the seven crew members.

Istanbul governor Muammer Guler said earlier the death toll had been revised upwards to 10, but Haarlemmermeer mayor Michel Bezuijen said the official figure remained at nine.

Officials in Turkey's transport ministry said around 56 foreigners and 78 Turkish nationals were on board the aircraft which left Istanbul at 08:22 am (0622 GMT) for Amsterdam with 127 passengers.

Mr Bezuijen said investigators were analysing the passenger lists to confirm the nationalities and identities of those on board.

"The chance of survival in plane accidents is close to zero. And this is a miracle. The fact that the plane crashed on soft ground and that there was no fire... decreased the death toll," Turkish Transport Minister Binali Yildirim said.

One passenger told Turkish television that the plane's tail hit the edge of a nearby highway in the landing before crashing - sending passing motorists scurrying from their cars and running across the fields to help.

"We were at an altitude of 600 metres (2,000 feet) when we heard the announcement that we were landing," Kerem Uzel told the NTV news channel.

"We suddenly descended a great distance as if the plane fell into turbulence. The plane's tail hit the ground... It slid from the side of the motorway into the field."

Tuncer Mutluhan, the representative of a private Turkish bank in the Netherlands, said the whole thing happened in a flash.

"While we were making a normal landing, it felt like we fell into a void, the plane lost control, suddenly plunged and crashed," he told NTV. "It all happened in three or five seconds... There was panic after that."

Another survivor described the scene as "a bloodbath".

"Everyone was scared to death. People were trapped between seats. After the impact there were screams - only then could you start checking if everything was intact. I do not wish it on my worse enemy to experience something like that."

Family members and friends who gathered anxiously at the airport were taken to a nearby sports hall to wait for news and survivors. The wounded were taken to about 11 different hospitals in eight towns.

Airport spokeswoman Mirjam Snoerwang said Turkish Airlines had made available a special flight to Schiphol, due to arrive at 1710 GMT, for family members of passengers of the ill-fated Boeing.

According to Dutch television station NOS, some witnesses saw the plane gliding the final distance to impact without its engines, its tail angled towards the ground.

The engines were found some 100 metres from the rest of the wreck. There was no fire and no smoke.

"The tail dropped first, then the plane fell in three pieces," said one witness. "About 15 people walked out of the wreckage almost immediately after impact."

Emergency services spokeswoman Ineke van der Zande told a press conference at the airport that six of the injured were in a serious condition, adding: "We cannot tell at this stage whether they will survive."

Twenty-five others were seriously wounded, 24 had light injuries, while the rest had yet to be assessed.

Mr Bezuijen said the cause of the crash was not yet known. Dutch officials could not confirm a statement from the Turkish transport ministry that the plane was making an emergency landing.

Dutch Transport Minister Camiel Eurlings said Turkish Airlines had met all the security standards, adding: "The circumstances of this accident will be investigated very closely."