Scores feared dead in Madrid plane crash
Reports say up to 150 people killed when airliner swerved off runway at Barajas airport
Link to this video
Video of the crash scene Up to 150 people are feared dead after a plane overshot the runway at Madrid's Barajas airport, according to Spanish media reports.
Only 25 people of the 173 passengers survived when the Spanair flight JK 5022 crashed after swerving off the runway near the airport's terminal four, according to the Reuters news agency.
Spanish national radio and the
El País newspaper reported that 45 people had been confirmed dead, citing the Spanish government as the source. Another 19 were said to be in a critical condition, with 25 suffering from lighter wounds.
Spanair, the country's second largest carrier, said the crash happened at 2.45pm (1.45pm BST). The flight was bound for Las Palmas, in Gran Canaria. Among the passengers on board the rear-engined MD82 plane were two children.
The flight had a code-sharing arrangement with the Lufthansa flight LH255, indicating there may have been many Germans on board.
Reports suggested the incident happened after the plane attempted to take off for a second time. Some observers said one of the left engines caught fire as the plane accelerated, causing it to swing off track. The plane reportedly broke in two.
The airport has been closed, with arriving passengers being turned away. Reporters at the scene said the terminal building had filled up with people either looking for information about relatives on the flight or caught up in the travel disruption.
Unconfirmed reports said the flight had been due to take off at 1pm and left the departure gate at 1.05pm, but returned just over half an hour later.
An official with the Madrid emergency rescue service, Samur, said crews were removing injured people and bodies from the plane. "It is certain catastrophe," the official said on condition of anonymity. Eleven fire engines were reportedly at the scene.
The Spanish prime minister, José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, broke off his holiday to return to Madrid.
Madrid's terminal four was
designed by the British architect Richard Rogers and opened to the public in 2006. It carries many of the European and long-haul flights and is a stopover for thousands of passengers travelling within Spain and to South America.
Around 60 million passengers use Barajas airport, which is located about 10 miles north-east of central Madrid.
An emergency telephone number was launched for relatives of people on the flights. Spanish radio said it was being inundated by calls from people complaining that the number was permanently engaged.