BELARUSSIAN PLANE CRASHES IN ARMENIA

Reuters
Feb 14 2008

YEREVAN (Reuters) – A Belarussian passenger plane caught fire and
crashed at the airport of the Armenian capital Yerevan on Thursday,
a spokeswoman for Armenia’s civil aviation authority said.

The 18 passengers and three crew members survived the crash but four
people were taken to hospital with serious burns, Gayane Davtyan said.

The Canadian-built CRJ-100 owned by carrier Belavia and bound for
Belarus’s capital Minsk caught fire and crashed from low altitude
after hitting the runway on take-off at 4.15 a.m. (0015 GMT), she said.

"Four people with serious burns were hospitalised. Nearly everyone
on board received burns of various degrees," she said.

Flights to and from Yerevan’s Zvartnots Airport were halted
temporarily.