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Amsterdam Survivors Recount 'Miracle'

Witnesses say plane seemed to lose power before slamming into field

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Feb 26, 2009 2:39 AM CST

(Newser) – Nothing seemed amiss on a Turkish jetliner heading for Amsterdam yesterday until the big plane suddenly "lurched downward" with a sickening pull and smoke poured into the cabin, a passenger told the Guardian. "People were panicking and then we hit the ground," said the traveler, whose daughter burst into tears as the jet plunged. "The plane just broke into pieces and, thank God, we managed to get out. It's miraculous."

Only nine of the 134 people on board perished in the crash. "The chance of survival in plane accidents is close to zero," said a Turkish transport spokesman. "The fact that the plane crashed on soft ground and that there was no fire decreased the death toll." A student cycling past as the jet fell from the sky said the aircraft seemed to have lost power. Investigators are studying the crash site and analyzing the black box recovered at the scene.

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Rescue workers scramble at the scene of a plane crash near Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport yesterday. (AP Photo/ Dutch Police)

Rescue workers scramble over the scene of a plane which slammed into a field, at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, the Netherlands, yesterday. (AP Photo/ Dutch Police)

Rescue workers climb over the wreckage of a Turkish Airlines jet near Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport yesterday. (AP Photo / Peter de Jong)

Rescue workers examine the wreckage of a Turkish Airlines airplane at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport yesterday. (AP Photo / Frank Augstein)

The tail of a Turkish Airlines aircraft rests on the ground after it slammed into a field while attempting to land at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport yesterday. (AP Photo/ Andre Lugtigheid)

Rescue workers examine a Turkish Airlines plane which slammed into a field while attempting to land at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport yesterday. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

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erial footage of the Turkish airliner that crashed in a field near Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport. (CNN Video)

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One of the hostesses ran toward me, screaming. There was panic as we left the plane. We noticed that the airplane had split. We just threw ourselves out of the gap. - Flight TK1951 passenger Huseyin Sumer

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Amsterdam Survivors Recount 'Miracle'