The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Five French officials killed as plane crashes in fireball
Malta: Customs workers die after aircraft plummets following take-off
Five French customs officers were killed when a plane heading towards Libya to monitor migrant trafficking routes crashed shortly after take-off at Malta’s main airport.
The US-registered light aircraft, on lease to a company in Luxembourg, was seen banking sharply before plummeting to the ground and exploding in a huge fireball at around 7.20am local time.
Malta’s government said the five men were part of a French customs surveillance operation tracing routes of human and drug trafficking.
The plane, a twin-propeller Fairchild Metroliner
“There was a second explosion and I thought ‘Oh my God, this is not just a fire’”
Mark III, had been heading for Misrata in north-west Libya.
A government spokesman said witnesses had confirmed there was no explosion prior to impact.
Actor Edward De Gaetano was returning to London when he witnessed the aftermath of the crash.
He said: “We were about to take off; moments before we did from our windows we could see a massive explosion – at first we had no idea what caused it.
“Then there was a second explosion and I thought ‘Oh my God, this is not just a fire’. We are all a bit stunned.”
Mr De Gaetano said it was “definitely not a military plane” which had crashed – with flames from the explosion “engulfing” a nearby tree.
He said that everything seemed “very, very normal” beforehand.
The airport was closed for four hours while debris was cleared, causing dozens of flights to be delayed and cancelled, and officials warned it would take “some time” for the schedule to return to normal.
A spokesman for the airport at Luqa said: “We can confirm that the five crew on board the aircraft are deceased.
“Our thoughts are with families of people involved in this accident.
“An investigation is currently ongoing and we are working with all the authorities to provide them with any assistance necessary.”