At least 9 dead in Amsterdam plane crash

AMSTERDAM -- A Turkish Airlines plane carrying 135 people slammed into a muddy field while attempting to land at Amsterdam's main airport in misty weather today. Nine people were killed and more than 50 were injured, many seriously, officials said.

The Boeing 737-800, en route from Istanbul to Amsterdam, broke into three pieces when it hit the ground short of a runway at Schiphol Airport at 10:31 a.m. local time. The fuselage split in two, close to the cockpit, and the tail broke off. The crash site is about two miles from the runway.

A spokesman for investigators said two pilots and an apprentice pilot were among the dead and confirmed that the stricken plane's flight data recorders had been found and were to be analyzed by experts.

Investigators will explore a wide range of possible causes of the crash, ranging from weather-related factors such as wind shear or icing, to fuel starvation, navigational errors, pilot fatigue or bird strikes. Experts say initial results could be made public soon because of the sophistication of the Boeing 737-800s black boxes, although the full report will likely not be ready before the end of the year.

Experts say crashes involving modern airliners are more survivable due to engineering advances that have resulted in strengthened structures and fire retardant technologies used for cabin seats and furnishings, as well as better emergency training of both cockpit and cabin crews.

The most dramatic example of passenger survival was in the Hudson River landing last month of a US Airways Airbus A320 that lost engine power when it struck a flock of birds. All 155 people on board lived.

Wim Kok, a spokesman for the Dutch Anti-Terror Coordinator's office, said terrorism did not appear to be a factor.

"There are no indications whatsoever (of a terror attack)," Kok said.