second air crash in 2 days....


Last Updated: Tuesday, 16 August 2005, 13:53 GMT 14:53 UK

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Airliner comes down in Venezuela

Both the plane's engines are believed to have failed
A Colombian airliner with 160 people on board has crashed in a remote western region of Venezuela - officials say it is unlikely anyone has survived.
Rescue workers are on their way to the scene of the crash in Zulia state, a remote area near the Colombian border.

The West Caribbean Airways plane was travelling from Panama to the French island of Martinique.

Air traffic controllers reportedly lost contact with the MD-82 plane soon after the pilot reported engine problems.

It is unlikely that there are any survivors, but we cannot be sure until we reach the scene of the crash

Jesse Chacon
Venezuelan Interior Minister

Officials said there were 152 passengers on board the charter flight - mostly French citizens from Martinique - and eight Colombian crew members.

Venezuelan Interior Minister Jesse Chacon said the pilot had asked for authorisation to enter Venezuelan air space and land at Maracaibo airport because of problems with one of the engines.


Click here for a map of the area
The pilot then reported that the second engine was also failing and the aircraft began to lose altitude at about 7,000 feet (2,100 metres) a minute, Mr Chacon said.

MD-82

Short-medium range airliner
Produced from 1980-1999
Capacity: 152 passengers
Two rear-mounted Pratt and Whitney turbofan engines

"It is unlikely that there are any survivors, but we cannot be sure until we reach the scene of the crash," he added.

Officials believe the plane came down in a mountainous area near the town of Machiques, 836km (520 miles) west of Caracas, between 0300 and 0345 local time (between 0700 and 0745 GMT).

"Residents in the area said they heard an explosion," aviation official Francisco Paz said.

Heavy rains are reported to be hampering the rescue effort.

West Caribbean Airways was set up in 2000 to provide low-cost flights within Colombia and to the Caribbean region, according to the company website.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4156224.stm

I saw this earlier, not what I needed to see right before my trip (this one and the one in Greece)

I know, i have to fly in a little over a month and i'm growing very leery about the experience. I've never had trouble flying before but these crashing have become alarmingly frequent lately