Plane crashes on landing in Darfur; some survivors

A small passenger plane flying from Khartoum, Sudan crashed upon landing in Western Darfur on Thursday, reportedly killing six of the 38 people on board, officials said. There is not a clear estimate of the number of dead. A Tarco Airlines spokesman said that only one of the passangers had died in crash at the airport in Zalingei.

"Two tyres burst on landing and the aircraft split in two and burst into flames," said Tarco Airlines spokesman Issam Eddine Ibrahim.

Sudanese officials have said that no crew member was killed in the accident.

"There were survivors, injured and dead," said West Darfur Governor Abdel Hakim Jaafar Asam Ishaq.

Several airline companies have been banned by the government because of their poor safety records.