Watch: Ukrainian cargo plane crashes in Greece, killing all eight crew members

Greek and Serbian authorities said on Sunday that a Ukrainian cargo plane carrying munitions from Serbia to Bangladesh crashed in northern Greece late on Saturday, killing all crew members on board.

Witnesses said that the plane crashed while on fire near the city of Kavala (Qula) before it exploded when it collided with corn fields around midnight local time.

The pilot requested an emergency landing due to engine problems.

In footage filmed by drones from the site of the accident, the charred wreckage of the Antonov AN-12 is seen scattered in fields.

Ukrainian cargo plane crashes near Kavala, northeastern Greece pic.twitter.com/bwgA7jjdw4

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Ukraine-based operator Meridian Airlines said all eight crew members died.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said all of them are Ukrainians.

A spokesman for the Civil Protection Service said that the Greek authorities have so far recovered the body of one of the crew members.

The mayor of the area said that six bodies were found during an initial survey of the area by a drone.

Serbian Defense Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic said that the plane was carrying 11.5 tons of ammunition, including mortars and mortars for training, made by its defense sector, noting that the party that bought the shipment was the Ministry of Defense of Bangladesh.

Denis Bogdanovic, general manager of Meridian, confirmed the Serbian version of events and said the incident was not related to the war in Ukraine.

Greek state TV channel ERT reported that the plane's signal was lost very soon after the pilot requested an emergency landing from Greek aviation authorities due to engine problems.

Unofficial video footage uploaded to ERTnews.gr showed the plane in flames as it descended rapidly before hitting the ground in what appeared to be an explosion.

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