Over 100 killed in Madrid plane crash

The Spanish Government had earlier said there were at least 45 people dead and 44 others injured in the crash when the airliner en route to the Canary Islands of Spain swerved off the end of a runway at Madrid’s airport. It later raised its estimate of the number of dead in the Spanair plane crash to at least 100 and has counted 28 survivors, most of them badly injured, the newspaper El Pais said on its website.

“There were 178 passengers on board, including the crew,” said Valentin Narro, an official at the Interior Ministry’s office for Madrid.

A Red Cross official at the airport said the aircraft, Spanair flight JK5022, swerved off the runway during takeoff and caught fire. Television footage of the accident showed clouds of white smoke billowing over the runway at Madrid Barajas International Airport.

Olivia Acosta, a spokeswoman for the Red Cross at Barajas airport, said 22 ambulances were at the scene and that a makeshift hospital had been set up.

In April, the Federal Aviation Administration inspected American Airline MD-80s and found a maintenance problem: wiring bundles that had been improperly wrapped and attached inside wheel wells. The airline canceled 3,300 flights.

The wiring is required to be stowed in a way to avoid chafing by moving parts in the wheel well, which otherwise could result in an electric short.

Spanair, founded in 1986, has hubs in Madrid and Barcelona and flies within Spain and the rest of Europe, as well as West Africa.

The airline, which carried 11.2 million passengers last year, is part of the Star Alliance, which also includes United Airlines, Air Canada, SAS and Lufthansa of Germany.

Earlier on Wednesday, Spanair pilots had threatened to go on strike, saying management did not have a plan to fix the carrier's problems.