3 killed in tourist plane crash in northern France

By Necva Tastan Sevinc

ISTANBUL (AA) - Three people were killed on Friday when a small tourist plane crashed shortly after takeoff in the town of Champhol in northern France, local authorities said.

The accident occurred at around 4 pm local time (1400GMT) in a residential area, but no homes were hit, according to a statement from the Eure-et-Loir department, Le Parisien reported.

Only one parked car sustained damage.

All three occupants of the aircraft, two men and a woman, died at the scene despite efforts by emergency services to resuscitate them.

Local authorities said the victims, who were friends, were residents of Eure-et-Loir.

The pilot, aged 77, was a highly experienced former army colonel.

The aircraft crashed just three minutes after taking off, for reasons that remain unclear.

Officials from the Bureau of Investigation and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety are conducting further inquiries.