Switzerland: Twenty dead in WW2 plane crash

Twenty people have died after a World War Two vintage aircraft crashed into a Swiss mountainside, police say.

The plane – a Junker JU-52 HB-HOT – was carrying 17 passengers and three crew on a sightseeing flight when it took off on Saturday.

Operator JU-Air said it was saddened by the news and it had set up a helpline for relatives. It has suspended all flights until further notice.

The cause of the crash is not yet known.

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An eyewitness told Swiss newspaper 20 Minutes that the “plane turned 180 degrees to the south and fell to the ground like a stone”.

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The aircraft came down on a mountainside about 2,540m (8,333 ft) above sea level, police say.

JU-Air runs sightseeing tours on its squadron of German-made vintage aircraft.

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In another crash on Saturday, a family of four including two young children were killed when a small plane came down in central Switzerland.

Source: BBC