Reports say an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 on a routine flight to Nairobi, Kenya has crashed, with 149 passengers and eight crew members on board.
According to the Ethiopian Airlines spokesman the crash occurred at 8:44 a.m. local time on Sunday.
It was not clear whether there were any survivors in the crash that occurred Sunday morning, InsideOjodu reports.
Kenya’s Transport Secretary, James Macharia, said passengers from at least 35 nations were aboard the Ethiopian airlines’ flight 302.
However, a message of condolence by the office of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed through the official twitter page, suggested that there were some deaths.
“The Office of the PM, on behalf of the Government and people of Ethiopia, would like to express its deepest condolences to the families of those that have lost their loved ones on Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 on regular scheduled flight to Nairobi, Kenya this morning”, the message on government’s Twitter handle read.
A retired Nigerian Ambassador, Abiodun Bashua, was among other nationalities aboard the ill-fated Ethiopian air which crashed shortly after taking off from the airport in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian Airlines management confirmed this his death.
Reports also confirmed that a Nigerian-born Canadian scholar, Professor Pius Adesanmi, was among the 157 passengers onboard.
Meanwhile, U.S. aerospace giant, Boeing, said on Sunday it was “deeply saddened” about the deaths of all 157 people aboard Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 and would provide technical assistance to find out why its aircraft crashed.
The brand new Boeing 737 which was delivered just last year was heading from Addis Ababa to Nairobi when it crashed.
“Boeing is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of the passengers and crew on Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, a 737 MAX 8 airplane,” the company said in a statement.
“We extend our heartfelt sympathies to the families and loved ones of the passengers and crew on board and stand ready to support the Ethiopian Airlines team,” it said.