''Lao Airlines is taking all necessary steps to
coordinate and dispatch all rescue units to the
accident site in the hope of finding survivors
and at the same time informing relatives of the
passengers.''
The pilot has been identified as 56-year-old Young San. San
had more than 30 years' of flying experience. He
was a pilot for Royal Air Cambodge and had been
employed Lao Airlines for more than 2 years. San
received his flight training in Russia and later
in France.
The ATR 72 is a twin-engine turboprop short-haul
regional airliner built by the French-Italian
aircraft manufacturer ATR. The ATR 72-600 has a
seating configuration of 68-to-74-seats. ATR
reports the aircraft, registered under
RDPL-34233, was (Manufacturing Serial Number)
1071, delivered from the production line in
March 2013 to Lao Airlines.
The Laos' Authorities will
lead the investigation and will remain the
official source of information. In line with the
ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization)
Annex 13 convention, ATR will provide full
assistance the French Bureau d'Enquêtes et
Analyses (BEA), safety investigation authority
representing the country of the aircraft
manufacturer.
A list of the 44 passengers
was released by the airline at about 9pm. It
described the passengers as five from Thailand,
five from Australia, three from Korea, seven
from France, one from the US, one from China,
one from Taiwan, one from Canada and two from
Vietnam. The names of the crew have not been
released.
