Pilot reports of fire before crash

SEOUL (AP):

A pilot aboard an Asiana Airlines cargo plane that crashed yesterday in waters off a southern South Korean resort island reported a fire just before losing contact with air-traffic workers, an official said.

The pilot yelled "Cargo fire!" and "Emergency!" about 10 minutes before the plane disappeared from radar screens, according to an air traffic official who declined to be named because the investigation was ongoing.

The plane also signalled an emergency to Jeju International Airport on the resort island, where it was trying to land, the official said.

The South Korean pilot, identified by the airline as Choi Sang-ki, was flying a Boeing-747 with a co-pilot, transporting computers, semiconductors, resin solution and paint among other items to Pudong in China, the airline said.

Asiana Airlines said the cargo had been loaded in line with international air transport regulations.

Five coastguard patrol boats and four helicopters searched the area for signs of the pilot and the co-pilot, Jeju coastguard spokesman Choi Kyu-mo said.

The coast guard recovered part of a wing with an Asiana Airlines logo on it, life jackets and parts of a pilot seat, the coastguard said in a statement.

The plane took off from South Korea's Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, according to the airline.

Asiana officials got a report early yesterday morning from the pilot that the plane was having mechanical difficulties and would try to make its way to the Jeju island's airport, said Jason Kim, a spokesman for Asiana.

Asiana Airlines said the cargo had been loaded in line with international air transport regulations.