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Tunisian plane crash-lands at sea near Sicily, 23 survive
Tunis, August 6, 2005 (TunisiaOnline)
A Tunisian passenger plane with 39 people onboard, including 4 crew-members, crash-landed Saturday in the Mediterranean Sea off Sicily on a flight from Bari (Italy) to the island of jerba (Tunisia) Tunisian authorities confirmed.
The aircraft, a French-Italian "ATR 72" plane, was carrying Italian tourists on a charter flight.
The plane belonged to Tuninter , a small Tunisian company with regular service to local airports and charter service to neighbouring destinations. Its chairman, Mr Moncef Zouari, told reporters this evening there were at least 23 survivors. Ten are reported dead and the rest are still unaccounted for.
Mr Zouari said it was still too early to pinpoint definitively the exact causes of the accident. But, he paid tribute to the pilot whose initiative, he said, has saved many lives.
According to statements by the Tunisian surviving pilot, the accident occurred when the two engines lost their thrust as the airplane was making its way back from Bari. The pilot told the Italian control-tower he had to land at sea since he could not reach the Palermo airport, which was still about 12 miles away.
Mr Zouari defended the safety record of his company. The airplane, he said, has gone through frequent inspections; the last one being in June of this year. He added the pilot was a 25-year veteran with a long experience flying ATR airplanes.
A company delegation, headed by Mr Zouari, will head to Palermo Sunday to extend its condolences to the victims' families, enquire about the injured and talk to Italian authorities about the ongoing investigation.