A PASSENGER plane with 58 people on board plunged into a river after clipping a road bridge outside Taiwan's capital, with 27 people rescued and others trapped inside.
The number of fatalities are unclear, but the Taiwanese Civil Aviation Authority said in a press conference that there were nine confirmed deaths, 18 people were injured, and 31 people who were unaccounted for.
There were five crew members and two passengers were children.
The TransAsia ATR 72-600 turboprop plane was on a domestic flight when it hit a road bridge before ploughing into the Keelung River in New Taipei City, Taiwan.
CNA said the flight from Taipei to the outlying island of Kinmen lost contact with flight controllers at 10.55am local time.
At least 170 emergency staff have been deployed - including ambulances, fire engines and watercraft - to assist in the rescue operation.
Rescuers are still at the crash site working to free trapped passengers and recover parts of the wreckage.
Television images showed rescuers standing on large sections of broken wreckage trying to pull passengers out of the plane with ropes. Those who were rescued — including two children -- were put in dinghies and taken to the shore.
Some were then loaded on stretchers and all 27 rescued have been taken to hospital, reports said.
Fatalities rise ... rescue personnel work to free passengers from a TransAsia ATR 72-600 turboprop plane that crash-landed into a river outside Taiwan's capital Taipei. Picture: AFP Source: AFP
Survivors ... passengers from the TransAsia ATR 72-600 turboprop plane. Picture: AFP Source: AFP
They have also released the names of those on board.
As many as 31 passengers were from mainland China, Taiwan's TVBS news broadcaster said.
Parts of the wrecked fuselage of the turboprop ATR 72 jutted out of the Keelung River just a couple dozen metres from the shore near the city's downtown Sungshan airport.
The main section of fuselage was on its side, missing a wing.
Rescuers clustered around the plane in rubber boats more than two hours after the crash, and could be seen pulling carry-on luggage from an open plane door.
Waiting for help .. passengers in the Transasia Air plane crash. Picture: Taiwan's CTI News/Twitter Source: Supplied
Moving the injured ... a rescue crew carries a passenger from a TransAsia Airways ATR 72-600 turboprop airplane. Picture: Ashley Pon/Getty Images Source: Getty Images
Rescuing survivors ... a passenger from a TransAsia ATR 72-600 turboprop plane that crash-landed into a river outside Taiwan's capital Taipei on a stretcher. Picture: AFP Source: AFP
Terrifiying images have also emerged of how the plane went off course before it hit the bridge and then crashed into the river.
Terrifying images ... A montage of dashboard cam images showing the moments before the TransAsia Airways plane crash in New Taipei City. Source: Missxoxo168 / Twitter Source: Twitter
Taiwanese TV stations continue to broadcast live footage of rescue workers in life vests and yellow helmets surrounding the plane's partially-submerged fuselage in inflatable rafts.
Passengers scramble to safety as plane hits bridge and lands in river
On the scene ... rescue personnel put an injured passenger into an ambulance. Picture: AFP Source: AFP
The New Taipei City Fire Department has dispatched five rescue teams, equipped with speed boats, to the accident site near the Nanyang Bridge in Xizhi district, CNA said.
The aeroplane was flying to the offshore island of Kinmen and had only just left Taipei Songshan Airport when the accident happened.
The crash site ... rescue teams work to free people from a TransAsia Airways ATR 72-600 turboprop airplane that crashed into the Keelung River. Picture: Ashley Pon/Getty Images Source: Getty Images
TransAsia, a privately-owned airline, had suffered a serious crash last July, when flight GE222 crashed near the airport at Magong on the Penghu island chain during a rainstorm, killing 48 people and injuring 10 others. That aircraft was also an ATR-72.
The airline is based in Taiwan and has been operating as a commercial carrier since 1951. It flies generally local services but has expanded to fly more international routes recently. The company is currently owned by Golden Development & Construction Co Ltd.
