Benin Crash Death Toll Tops 60

More than 60 people, mostly Lebanese, were killed Thursday when a passenger plane bound for Beirut, crashed into the sea shortly after takeoff from the west African nation of Benin, Lebanese airport officials said.

UTA Flight 141 from Cotonou, Benin's capital was carrying about 140 passengers, including crewmembers.

Television images showed pieces of the plane lying in the surf: a shorn-off landing gear, the cockpit and the rear part of the fuselage, along with an engine.

Tangled wires and metal hung from the ripped-open fuselage.

The airport officials said two Lebanese men had chartered the Boeing 727, and most of the passengers were believed to be returning home for the Christmas holidays.

Thousands of Lebanese immigrants live and work in West African countries.

At Beirut airport, the flight was still appearing on the screen, with an arrival time of 11.