U.S. cargo plane crashes on takeoff in Belgium

updated 1:12 p.m. ET May 25, 2008

BRUSSELS, Belgium - A cargo plane crashed at the end of a runway and split in two while trying to take off at Brussels airport on Sunday, authorities said.

Four of the five crew members on board the Boeing 747 were slightly injured, said Francis Vermeiren, mayor of the nearby town of Zaventem. The mayor was coordinating rescue efforts after the crash.

"The plane is not on fire but it has split into two," he told VRT radio.

Firefighters were coating the wings of the plane with special fire retardant foam as a precaution because the plane was still full of jet fuel, the mayor said.

He said the plane was on a scheduled flight to Bahrain. It was not known what cargo the plane was carrying.

Michigan-based carrier

The plane came to a halt at the end of a runway, near houses and a cemetery.

Vermeiren said the pilot told rescue authorities he heard a large noise while trying to take off just after midday. It was not yet clear what caused the crash.

The plane is owned by Kalitta Air, a cargo carrier based in Ypsilanti, Michigan.

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