Plane carrying 81 crashes in Columbian, 6 survive

Rescuers have started the grim task of removing bodies from the site of an air crash in Colombia as it emerged the pilot circled in a desperate attempt to burn off fuel before attempting to land.

The chartered plane, carrying top Brazilian football team Chapecoense, crashed outside the city of Medellin killing 76 and leaving just six survivors - three of them players.

Team members had posed together for a picture in Bolivia ahead of take-off as they were travelling to Colombia for the biggest game in the club's history, the Copa Sudamerica final. But their journey came to a devastating end when the jet smashed into a hill and broke in two in remote mountains at about 10.15pm.

The Avro RJ85 plane, which was carrying nine crew, suffered power failures while flying through the Antioquia Department on its way from Bolivia. The pilot is believed to have circled around before crash landing in a desperate bid to lose fuel and avoid an explosion on impact.

Just 20 days ago, the same plane had transported the Argentinian football team, including megastars Lionel Messi and Angel Di Maria, to Belo Horizonte in Brazil, where they played Brazil in a World Cup qualifier match.

Heartbreaking images have since emerged online showing devastated players who were not travelling with the Chapecoense squad sitting in the club's empty changing room.

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