BISHKEK: The crash of a Turkish cargo plane in Kyrgyzstan that claimed at least 37 lives on Monday was caused by "pilot error," authorities in the Central Asian country said, AFP reported.
"According to preliminary information, the plane crashed due to a pilot error," deputy Prime Minister Muhammetkaly Abulgaziev said at a briefing broadcast on state television.
According to the airport administration, the plane was supposed to make a stopover at Manas, near the capital city Bishkek, on its way from Hong Kong to Istanbul. It crashed when trying to land in poor visibility at 7:31 a.m. (0131 GMT).
According to Reuters, the doomed plane ploughed on for a few hundred metres (yards) through the Dachi Suu village, home to hundreds of families, shattering into pieces and damaging dozens of buildings.
Plumes of smoke rose above the crash site, with some mudbrick buildings razed to the ground and others pierced by parts of the plane.
The torn-off tail assembly, rotated upside down, towered above a one-storey house. A football pitch-sized area nearby was completely levelled and covered with twisted pieces of metal.
Locals said they had initially thought the area was struck by an earthquake.
"Around seven o'clock in the morning I heard a strong swat (noise) and after that all the nearest houses were shaken," said local resident Andrei Andreyev.
"Of course, everyone got frightened and started to run out of the houses to the street. Nobody understood what was going on because there was a fog, the weather was not good."
Initial estimates put the death toll from the crash at 37, said Kyrgyzstan's emergencies ministry. Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev announced Tuesday would be a national day of mourning.
Turkish Airlines said in a statement that the cargo flight was operated by ACT Airlines and neither the Boeing 747-400 aircraft nor the crew belonged to Turkish Airlines.
Turkish cargo operator ACT Airlines also said the jet was theirs.
"Our TC-MCL signed plane, flying on Jan. 16 from Hong Kong to Bishkek, crashed on landing at Bishkek at the end of the runway for an unknown reason," ACT Airlines said in an emailed statement.
"More information will be disclosed concerning our four-person team when we get clear information."
Turkish Airlines has clarified that none of its cargo plane has faced any accident. The cargo flight with TC-MCL registration number that faced an accident near Bishkek at around 01:40 UTC while enroute Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) to Bishkek Manas International Airport (FRU) was neither the Turkish Airline Plane nor its crew members belonged to Turkish Airlines.
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