An Angolan Antonov 26 airplane exploded minutes after takeoff from a northeastern Angolan airport killing all 48 people on board, the Portuguese news agency Lusa reported here Wednesday.
The Russian-built plane "exploded in the air" minutes after takeoff from Saurimo, capital of the northeastern Lunda Sul province, Lusa said citing the travel agency which chartered the plane.
The agency said all 42 passengers and six crew were killed in the crash, which happened Tuesday evening, the travel agency Guicango said. It said the plane had a Russian crew.
The plane came down some 50 kilometers (30 miles) from Saurimo, in the Mona Quimbundo region.
The cause of the accident was not immediately known.
Angola's civil aviation authority dispatched a team of investigators to the crash site early Wednesday -- LISBON (AFP)
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