Some 40 dead in Tajik cargo plane crash in S. Sudan

A Tajik Asia Airways Russian-made Antonov cargo plane crash-landed 800 meters from the runway of South Sudan’s Juba international airport shortly after taking off Wednesday, Nov. 4. The An-12 was bound for Paloich in the Upper Nile region in the north. Some 40 people are reported to have been killed both on board and on the ground, although there were some survivors among the crew and seven passengers believed aboard. The cause of the crash is as yet unknown. The Russian diplomatic mission in Uganda is in contact with South Sudanese officials following reports that the five-member Russian crew were among the dead. The plane is 44 years old.