Beijing: All 53 people onboard a small commuter plane were killed today (Nov 21, 2004) when it crashed into a frozen lake minutes after taking off in northern China's Baotou city.

The small aircraft, carrying 47 passengers and six crew members, crashed into the lake in Nanhai Park of Boutou at about 8.20 AM (5.40 IST), killing all of them, Xinhua news agency said.

The CRJ-200 plane, en route to China's eastern metropolis Shanghai, plunged into the lake shortly after it took off from the airstrip in Baotou, a city in the Inner Mangolia region, around 500 kms west of Beijing, it said.

The Civil Aviation authorities have confirmed there were 47 passengers and six crewmembers onboard and all of them were dead.

Witnesses said the plane broke into flaming fragments, damaging a house beside the park and setting fire several yachts nearby.

Fire fighters and police are trying to break the ice on the lake to search for bodies. According to an unconfirmed report seventeen bodies have been recovered so far.