Sunday, August 14 2005 16:56 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Athens: A Cypriot airliner with 121 people on board from Larnaca, Cyprus, crashed today (Aug 14, 2005) on a mountain on the Euboea peninsula, northeast of Athens, a traffic controller at Athens international airport said.

Just before the crash, an airport official said the plane appeared to be flying pilotless.

"The airport lost all contact with the plane which should have landed in the late morning, and two air force planes sent up in reconnaissance found it flying above the Euboea peninsula, but they saw the pilots doubled up in the cabin," Iannis Pantazaratos said. "We do not know how the plane is flying. It is being escorted by the military planes and the airport is in a state of emergency," said Pantazaratos, traffic control chief at Athens airport.

The Helios airlines plane was reported to be carrying 115 passengers and six crew.