Emergency crews close in on debris from Lebanon plane crash

Emergency crews today were closing in on the wreckage of an Ethiopian Airlines plane that crashed into the sea after takeoff from Beirut with 90 people on board, Lebanese officials said.

Emergency crews today were closing in on the wreckage of an Ethiopian Airlines plane that crashed into the sea after takeoff from Beirut with 90 people on board, Lebanese officials said.

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"The black boxes have not been localised but we have made enormous progress," an army spokesman told AFP, speaking on
condition of anonymity.

"We are sounding the area where the plane went down and are making headway."

He said emergency crews had worked non-stop since the plane went down early Monday but bad weather and murky waters
had hampered the search.

"The more the weather improves the more efficient the search," he said, noting sunny skies on Wednesday and a calm
sea.

Transport Minister Ghazi Aridi also told AFP early today that he was optimistic and that rescuers and salvage crews
were making headway.

"We are expecting results today," he said.

Ethiopian Airlines Flight 409 tumbled in a ball of fire into the Mediterranean early Monday just minutes after takeoff
in stormy weather.

The Boeing 737-800 bound for Addis Ababa had 90 passengers and crew on board. All are presumed dead.