Suspected terrorist attack from Russia

A DHL cargo plane crashed into a residential area in Vilnius. The plane came from Leipzig – where an incendiary device made headlines in July.

Marty Hartman/t-online

A cargo plane taking off from Leipzig crashed in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius on Monday morning. The emergency services alarm was sounded at 4:28 a.m. Swiss time (5:28 a.m. local time). Debris hit a house. Twelve people living inside were rescued uninjured.

A reporter from Radio Lithuania reported at the scene of the accident in the Lipkarnis area that many parts of the plane were thrown around. According to preliminary information, there were four people on the plane. It is said that one person died.

Is this a terrorist attack?

Authorities assumed it was an accident but did not rule out the possibility of terrorism. “This is one of the versions of the accident that needs to be investigated and verified,” Lithuanian Police Chief Arunas Paulauskas told a news conference on Monday.

The plane crashed shortly before the airport: according to DHL, the crew made an emergency landing.Image: Screenshot

To your consternation, the plane took off from the DHL hub in Leipzig. In July, a package caught fire at an airport. There was an incendiary device in the express delivery that spontaneously ignited. Just a coincidence averted a disaster: the plane scheduled to deliver the package was delayed.

The package that caught fire in Leipzig was posted in Lithuania and was on its way to the UK. The incendiary device was apparently designed to ignite during transport. Germany's Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) and the German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) subsequently issued notices to companies in the aviation and logistics industries, warning unidentified persons of sending “unconventional incendiary devices” through freight service providers.

Swiftair 737-400 crash site.Image: Chart: t-online/ha Source: Flightradar

Could Russia be behind the attack?

The word “Russia” does not appear in the warning messages issued by the Office for the Protection of the Constitution and the BKA. Nonetheless, in the security sphere, a link to Russia's growing sabotage in Germany cannot be ruled out.

Since spring, a total of four incendiary devices have been reported in packages sent across Europe. One caught fire in the UK and one in Poland. Only one package was found and the incendiary device inside was triggered. The package was sent to Germany, where investigators obtained important information.

If this is indeed a new sabotage strategy for the Russian secret service, it would fit into a pattern identified by the German Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution. The Office for the Protection of the Constitution believes that Russian secret services are increasingly relying on so-called “low-level agents” to carry out sabotage activities to attack Western countries.

The authorities are inclined to believe it was an accident

Lithuanian Police Chief Paulauskas did not want to rule out terrorism, but he spoke of another main suspicion of the authorities. He said the accident was “most likely” caused by a technical error or human error.

Paulauskas went on to say that a firm answer to the question of the cause of the crash “won't come so soon.” It can take a full week to examine the crime scene, collect evidence, and collect information and items. “We still have a lot of work to do.”

How did the accident happen?

The aircraft, registration EC-MFE, took off from Leipzig at 3:08 am. According to flight data, the Boeing 737 flew almost straight to the northeast, with a flight time of about 1 hour and 15 minutes. She then turned around and headed to Vilnius Airport.

DHL said the crew made an emergency landing shortly before reaching its destination. A surveillance camera from a nearby business captured the final moments before the accident. The plane can be seen descending; everything seems normal at first.

Then the descent suddenly became steeper and the next moment the plane disappeared behind the hall. Then, a blinding explosion lit up the night scene. A fireball rose, followed by thick smoke.

What hit the ground?

Renatas Pozzela, head of Lithuania's emergency services, said the cargo plane crashed a few kilometers from the airport. The wreckage reportedly slid hundreds of meters.

Aerial photos: The airport in the lower left corner and the Lipkanis district in the upper right corner, where a house was hit by rubble.Image: Google Earth/dpa

The residential area there is not densely populated, with only a few houses. One of the houses was hit by rubble. The emergency services manager said the house had two floors and four apartments. Three families lived there. All twelve residents are safe. It said there was no information about possible injuries on the ground.

What do we know about the plane's crew?

According to Lithuanian news website Delfi, there were four people on board the plane, including two pilots and two flight attendants. Two of the crew members are Spanish citizens, one is from Lithuania and one is from Germany.

It is said that only one person can be saved if he dies. It is said that he was one of the Spaniards. Other crew members were taken to hospital. One of them is in critical condition, Delfi reported. DHL explained that the crew's “condition” was still being clarified, “but our thoughts are with them and their families.”