78 killed in Moroccan military plane crash

Plane crash site Guelmim – Najwan Al-Tijani 78 Moroccan soldiers have been killed, and three wounded in a military plane crash, according to official sources in contact with ArabsToday.  A military team of investigators has now flown to the area to search for the cause of the incident.  Sources claim that it is too early to talk about causes,

but that it appears that a technical problem might have caused the sudden crash.  The investigative team plans to look at the black box, and will listen to the voice recording between the pilot and the air traffic controllers in the airports of Al-Dajla, Al-Oyoon, and Guelmim.  They will also examine the remnants of the plane before presenting their report to senior officials.  The crash took place in a mountainous region north-east of Guelmim earlier today, and the plane that crashed was a C-130 military plane belonging to the Royal Moroccan Air force.  It crashed after hitting a mountain near Guelmim.  Government officials claim that the plane was full of military personnel travelling from Al-Dajla to the capital of Rabat to take part in a royal celebratory service that will be held in Rabat next Saturday.  Sources did not specify the number of military personnel on board, or their ranks, but said that these planes are only permitted to transport soldiers and their families.  The flight left Al-Dajla flying over Al-Oyoon and Guelmim on its way to the city of Quneitra before it crashed this morning in extremely cloudy conditions.