At least one dead after DHL cargo plane crashes into house in Lithuania

At least one person was killed when a DHL cargo plane crashed into a house in Lithuania this morning. 

One other person was taken to hospital after the aircraft smashed into a two-storey home near Vilnius Airport around 5.30am local time (3.30am UK time), Lithuania's public broadcaster said.

All of the residents in the house survived.

The cargo plane, which was operated by Madrid-based contractor Swiftair, was flying from Leipzig in Germany, the Lithuanian airport authority said.

It posted on X that city services including a fire truck were on site and did not immediately offer a cause for the crash.

Flight-tracking data from FlightRadar24 showed the aircraft made a turn to the north of the airport, lining up for landing, before crashing about a mile short of the runway.

A large police and ambulance presence was seen nearby, and several nearby major streets were cordoned off.

The head of the country's police, Renatas Pozela, said: "It fell a few kilometres before the airport, it just skidded for a few hundred metres, its debris somewhat caught a residential house.

"Residential infrastructure around the house was on fire, and the house was slightly damaged, but we managed to evacuate people," he said.

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Weather at Vilnius International Airport was around freezing temperature, with clouds before sunrise.

The Boeing 737 was 31 years old and considered by experts to be an older airframe - though that is not unusual for cargo flights.

DHL Group, headquartered in Bonn, Germany, did not immediately return a call for comment. Swiftair also could not be immediately reached.

(c) Sky News 2024: At least one dead after DHL cargo plane crashes into house in Lithuania