Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 registration number ET 302 on a regular flight to Nairobi, Kenya has on Sunday crashed 6 minutes after take off. Plane had 148 passengers with 8 crew members on board.
A spokesman said the crash happened at 08.44 local time on Sunday, shortly after take-off from the Ethiopian capital.
In a statement, the airline said that search and rescue operations were under way.
It did not provide details on the number of casualties.
“Ethiopian Airlines staff will be sent to the accident scene and will do everything possible to assist the emergency services,” the airline added.
First word of the crash came on Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s Twitter account.
He tweeted his “deepest condolences to the families of those that have lost their loved ones”.