Six dead as commuter plane crashes in Cork

Dublin, Feb 10 (AP) At least six people were killedwhen a small commuter aircraft carrying 12 people crashedtoday while trying to land in heavy fog at Cork Airport insouthwest Ireland, overturning and catching fire on therunway, Irish authorities said.

Cork County Council, which oversees emergencyservices, said six people were killed and six others injured.

It said two passengers had to be cut from the wreckage, andall six survivors, among them passengers with severe burns,were at Cork University Hospital.

The Irish Aviation Authority responsible for runningthe airport said the aircraft, a turboprop operated by Isle ofMan-based airline Manx2.com, made at least two attempts toland before crashing. It had been travelling from Belfast,Northern Ireland.

"There is a fire and debris has been scattered ontothe runway and over a wide area," said authority spokesmanMartin Towey.

He said the aircraft was a Fairchild Metroliner, an18-seat turboprop aircraft manufactured in San Antonio, Texas,in 1992. It was carrying 10 passengers and two crew members.

Cork Airport''s runway has been closed and all incomingflights are being diverted to Shannon, the larger airport insouthwest Ireland.

The Catholic bishop of Cork, John Buckley, comfortedrelatives of the dead and injured who had been in the terminalat the time of the crash.

Buckley said he "offered them the prayers of all Irishpeople at this sad time."

Manx2.com was founded in 2006 and operates flightslinking Ireland, Britain and the Isle of Man. It opened theBelfast-Cork route six months ago.

Today''s crash was the deadliest in Irish aviationsince 1968, when an Aer Lingus flight from Cork to Londoncrashed into the Irish Sea, killing all 61 on board. (AP)