World News 24-08-2000 Airbus Crash Kills 143 who: 143 dead what: In Airbus crash where: Bahrain when: Yesterday snippet: "The Bahrain authorities say all 143 people on board a Gulf Air plane which crashed off the country`s coast on Wednesday are now known to have died," says the BBC this morning. The Airbus-320 "plunged off radar screens into the shallow sea after an engine caught fire as it tried to land," reports The Sun`s Nick Parker. "About 70 bodies - mostly children - had been recovered as rescuers hunted in darkness for survivors". An air traffic controller said that the crew had not reported anythiung out of the ordinary, says Anton La Guardia in The Telegraph. He described how the plane had inexplicably circled the runway twice in an attempt to land, before "plunging into the sea on the third attempt and exploding in flames. He saw no fire or sign of trouble before the impact". Two Britons were reported to have been among the Egyptians and Bahrainis on board the scheduled three-hour flight from Cairo. "We can confirm there were two British passengers on the plane," a Foreign Office spokesman told The Times. "British officials know their identity but that information will not be released until they have been positively identifed and the next of kin have been informed." [... more]

What The Papers Say is delivered to thousands of readers every morning by web, WAP and email. Sign up today!