Cargo plane crash at Bagram base kills 7

CHARIKAR): A US military-contracted cargo plane crashed in central Parwan province on Monday afternoon, killing seven crew members, all civilians, officials said.

The aircraft went down soon after takeoff from the US military’s main base in Bagram at about 4pm, the district police chief, Col Zmarai Nasiri, told Pajhwok Afghan News. He linked the incident to a technical fault, saying further details were awaited.

The National Air Cargo aircraft crashed into mountains east of Kabul shortly after takeoff and erupted into flames. Crew members were killed, a statement from the Aviation Safety Network said.

The cause of the crash has not been determined so far, with the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) saying there was no indication of enemy activity in the area at the time of the crash.

Due to frequent roadside bombings and militant attacks on roads, foreign troops are heavily reliant on contracted aircraft to move troops and supplies in Afghanistan.

With rescue and recovery efforts underway and the base currently locked down, the coalition said emergency crews were on the scene, assessing the situation.

In response to an emailed query from Pajhwok, the ISAF media office confirmed the crash. “At 15:30 hours, a civilian cargo aircraft crashed on Bagram Airfield immediately after takeoff.”

Meanwhile, the Taliban claimed shooting down the plane. Without giving a specific figure, the group’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said all those on board the plane were killed.

Four US airmen were killed on Saturday when a military turboprop plane crashed in southern Afghanistan. The service members were identified as Capt. Reid K. Nishizuka, Staff Sgt. Richard A. Dickson, Capt. Brandon L. Cyr and Staff Sgt. Daniel N. Fannin.

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