Dozens of passengers were sucked out of a Russian-made plane over the Democratic Republic of Congo last night after a door opened accidentally during the flight.
"The doors opened including the ramp as the pressure system broke down. Everybody was sucked out and is presumed dead," , a military official in the capital Kinshasa said.
The accident occurred last night when the Soviet-era Ilyushin cargo plane, which had been chartered by the Congolese army, was flying at an altitude of 7,000 feet.
A Russian aviation official in Kinshasa said he believed there were 129 people on board the plane, which wasen route from Kinshasa in the west to the southeastern city of Lubumbashi.
The Russian crew was able to turn the Ilyushin 76 around and land at Kinshasa airport following the accident. The Ilyushin 76 has a large rear cargo door.
Members of DRC's rapid-intervention police force and their families were among the flight's passengers.
Agencies