Greek Civil Aviation authorities said the flight was headed from Serbia to Jordan. The An-12, a Soviet-built turboprop aircraft, was operated by the cargo carrier Meridian. Greek media reported that the plane was carrying eight people and that it was carrying 12 tonnes of “dangerous materials”, mostly explosives. However, local officials said they did not have specific information about the cargo and provided varying numbers of people on board. As a precaution, due to the strong smell emanating from the crash site, a coordination committee made up of municipal, police and fire officials told residents of the two locations closest to the crash site to keep their windows closed overnight, to don’t leave houses and wear masks. Authorities say they do not know if there were any hazardous chemicals on the plane, including those contained in batteries. Greece’s Civil Aviation Authority said the pilot managed to alert authorities to a problem with one of the plane’s engines and was given the choice to land at either Thessaloniki airport or Kavala and chose Kavala, which was closer, saying that he had for an emergency landing. Communication with the plane ceased almost immediately afterwards. The plane crashed about 40 kilometers (25 miles) west of the airport. “We were hearing explosions until a few minutes ago,” Filippos Anastasiadis, mayor of the municipality of Pangaios, told The Associated Press a little more than an hour after the accident. “I’m about 300 meters from the crash site.” One of Anastasiades’ MPs told state-run ERT that explosions could be heard for two hours after the crash. Locals reported seeing a fireball and a plume of smoke before the crash. ERT reported that army and explosives experts arrived at the site, which is located on arable land near two villages belonging to the municipality of Pangaios. But they are not expected to start working before dawn. Experts from the Atomic Energy Commission of Greece will join them. The fire department has cordoned off the area in a radius of about 400 meters. The cordoned off area will be expanded in the morning, fire officials said. ——— Nellas reported from Athens, Greece.
title: “Cargo Plane Operated By Ukrainian Airline Crashed In Greece " ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-14” author: “Lawrence Sampson”
Greek Civil Aviation authorities said the flight was headed from Serbia to Jordan. The An-12, a Soviet-built turboprop aircraft, was operated by the cargo carrier Meridian. Greek media reported that the plane was carrying eight people and that it was carrying 12 tonnes of “dangerous materials”, mostly explosives. However, local officials said they did not have specific information about the cargo and provided varying numbers of people on board. As a precaution, due to the strong smell emanating from the crash site, a coordination committee made up of municipal, police and fire officials told residents of the two locations closest to the crash site to keep their windows closed overnight, to don’t leave houses and wear masks. Authorities say they do not know if there were any hazardous chemicals on the plane, including those contained in batteries. Greece’s Civil Aviation Authority said the pilot managed to alert authorities to a problem with one of the plane’s engines and was given the choice to land at either Thessaloniki airport or Kavala and chose Kavala, which was closer, saying that he had for an emergency landing. Communication with the plane ceased almost immediately afterwards. The plane crashed about 40 kilometers (25 miles) west of the airport. “We were hearing explosions until a few minutes ago,” Filippos Anastasiadis, mayor of the municipality of Pangaios, told The Associated Press a little more than an hour after the crash. “I’m about 300 meters from the crash site.” One of Anastasiades’ MPs told state-run ERT that explosions could be heard for two hours after the crash. Locals reported seeing a fireball and a plume of smoke before the crash. The story continues ERT reported that army and explosives experts arrived at the site, which is located on arable land near two villages belonging to the municipality of Pangaios. But they are not expected to start working before dawn. Experts from the Atomic Energy Commission of Greece will join them. The fire department has cordoned off the area in a radius of about 400 meters. The cordoned off area will be expanded in the morning, fire officials said. ——— Nellas reported from Athens, Greece.
