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Nearly 160 Feared Dead In Air India Plane Crash

   Eight  survivors  from  crash  of  Boeing passenger jet near Mangalore
   airport

   Anjana Pasricha 22 May 2010

Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS

   In  this  frame  grab  made  off  TV9 video, firefighters try to douse
   flames  on  an  Air  India  plane  that  crashed  in Mangalore, in the
   southern Indian state of Karnataka, Saturday, May 22, 2010.

   An  Air  India  passenger  plane  has  crashed while trying to land in
   southern India, killing at least 158 people on board, in the worst air
   accident in India in a decade.
   The  Boeing 737 crashed as it overshot the runway after landing in the
   southern  Indian  city  of Mangalore early Saturday. Television images
   showed flames billowing from the aircraft.
   Rescue  workers and villagers close to the site pulled eight survivors
   from  the  wreckage.  They included children. There were 166 people on
   board including six crew members on a flight from Dubai.
   Air India official Anup Srivastasva says the crash was an accident. He
   says the main focus is on rescue operations, while Air India personnel
   are contacting relatives.

   Survivors  told reporters they heard a loud explosion before the plane
   crashed. Â
   The  plane  crash  is  the first major crash in India in a decade. Air
   India Express is the low budget arm of national carrier Air India.

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