A Russian-made cargo plane crashed and burst into flames in a rice field north of the Philippine capital, Manila, on Wednesday as it attempted to land.
Three crew were killed and three others pulled out alive from the burning wreckage.
The Antonov 12 aircraft was flying from Mactan in the central Philippines and crashed about 22 miles (35 kilometres) south of Clark airport, the former US Air Base near Manila, the director-general of the country's Civil Aviation Authority, Alfonso Cusi, said. Firefighters struggled into the night to put out the flames that engulfed the aircraft after it exploded on impact, ripping the plane into two sections, police Chief Inspector Carlito Fabro said. Villagers managed to rescue three crew members; two Russians and an Uzbek, who suffered bruises and were brought to a police station to rest, police said.
Three other crew were found dead near the cockpit, Cusi said, adding investigators were trying to identify the badly burned bodies.
A local man said he heard a loud explosion which alerted locals to the site.
The Antonov 12 plane was leased by a Manila-based airline company for domestic use, Cusi said.
Clark's tower lost communication with the aircraft at around 8:50 p.m. (1250 GMT).
3 Killed in Philippine cargo plane crash
06:11 GMT 22.04.2010 (Updated: 19:51 GMT 19.10.2022)
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A Russian-made cargo plane crashed and burst into flames in a rice field north of the Philippine capital, Manila, on Wednesday as it attempted to land.
Three crew were killed and three others pulled out alive from the burning wreckage.
