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Bodies of Lebanese killed in private jet crash in Iraq return to Beirut [The Daily Star, Beirut, Lebanon](Daily Star, The (Beirut, Lebanon) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Feb. 07--BEIRUT -- The bodies of six victims -- including three Lebanese nationals -- killed in a plane crash in northern Iraq were transferred to Beirut over the weekend, as details continued to emerge over the fate of the destroyed private jet. The Lebanese victims were named as businessman Abdullah Lahoud, from Aamchit, Jbeil, co-pilot Abdullah Yazbeck, from Hawsh al-Rafka, Bekaa and air hostess Stephanie Luca, from Batroun. Yazbeck and Luca were buried Sunday. Seven people were killed when the private jet -- carrying associates of Iraqi-British businessman Basil Mahdi Rahim from Sulaimaniyah, the capital of Iraq's autonomous northern Kurdish region, to the Turkish capital Ankara -- crashed on Friday night. A Beirut Airport source told The Daily Star that the jet's black box had been recovered and would be sent to Beirut at dawn Monday. The black box will then be sent to the U.S. for further analysis. The source said according to preliminary findings, the plane's right engine had stalled immediately after takeoff. The dead were identified as shareholders and technicians with telecommunications firm Asiacell by an Iraqi airport official. "The plane, which was a small private jet, crashed shortly after it took off because of bad weather," the official said. "Seven people have died, including three crew." Although officials have pointed to the poor weather surrounding Sulaimaniyah as a possible contributing factor to the crash, a source at Beirut's Rafik Hariri Airport told The Daily Star engine failure was to blame. The private jet left Beirut Friday before flying to Sulaimaniyah, via Ankara, where a number of associates got aboard. The plane was heading back to the Turkish capital when its engines failed, according to the source. "It is the worst time to have an engine failure as the pilot does not have any distance to maneuver [the plane to safety]," the source said. Asiacell, the first mobile telecoms company to be established in Iraq, paid tribute to Lahoud, 32, following the crash. "Abdullah was a young, decent, intelligent and ambitious man who had a bright future ahead of him," a statement on Asiacell's website said. "We express our deepest condolences to all the victims' families and friends and will remember this sad and tragic occasion always." Both Lahoud and Rahim were successful businessmen involved in Asiacell. Abdullah Lahoud was the son of former Lebanese aviation chief Youssef Lahoud. The other bodies arriving at Beirut airport Saturday were those of American, Turkish and Spanish nationals. Mourners and officials crowded the airport, which just last year witnessed the death of 90 passengers aboard an Ethiopian Airlines which crashed into the sea after takeoff. Caretaker Transport Minister Ghazi Aridi, Caretaker Health Minister Mohammad Jawad Khalifeh and Col. Bassam Butros, representing President Michel Sleiman, greeted relatives of the Lebanese victims. All six bodies were transferred to Rafik Hariri Hospital in the capital, where biopsies were carried out before the corpses were delivered to relatives. The bodies of U.S., Turkish and Spanish victims were delivered to their respective embassies. Yazbeck was buried in his village of Hosh al-Rafka in a ceremony held at the local municipality building. Family members, friends, caretaker Youth and Sports Minister Ali Abdullah and the head of Hezbollah's Religious Affairs Committee, Sheikh Mohammad Yazbeck, were all in attendance. Abdullah Yazbeck left behind a 4-year-old son. Meanwhile, Luca's body was laid to rest Sunday in the northern coastal town of Batroun. To see more of the Daily Star, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.dailystar.com.lb. Copyright (c) 2011, The Daily Star, Beirut, Lebanon Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com, e-mail [email protected], or call 866-280-5210 (outside the United States, call +1 312-222-4544) |