text: MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Dozens of people were injured when a packed Aeromexico-operated (AEROMEX.MX) Embraer (EMBR3.SA) jet crashed right after takeoff in Mexico’s state of Durango on Tuesday, but authorities said most were not seriously hurt and there were no fatalities. 
   
   The mid-sized jet was almost full, with 103 people including two infants and four crew members on board, when it crashed at about 4 p.m. local time (2100 GMT), authorities said. Passengers and crew jumped to safety before the plane was engulfed in flames. 
   
   Passenger Jackeline Flores told reporters the plane crashed shortly after taking off in heavy rain. She and her daughter escaped from a hole in the fuselage as the aircraft filled up with smoke and flames, she said. 
   
   “A little girl who left the plane was crying because her legs were burned,” said Flores, who said she was Mexican but lived in Bogota, Colombia. 
   
   Flores said her passport and documents burned in the fire. 
   
   “I feel blessed and grateful to God,” she said. 
   
   TV images showed the severely damaged body of the plane after it came to rest in scrubland and a column of smoke rose into the sky. 
   
   The plane had barely taken off when it felt like it was hit by a strong air current, another passenger told network Televisa. 
   
   Durango Governor José Rosas Aispuro also said a gust of wind rocked the plane before it plunged suddenly, citing air traffic control at the airport. The plane’s left wing hit the ground, knocking off two engines, before it came to a halt 300 meters (328 yards) from the runway, he told a news conference. 
   
   Passengers were able to escape on the plane’s emergency slides before it was engulfed in flames, he said. The pilot was the most severely hurt but was in a stable condition. 
   
   Grupo Aeroportuario Centro Norte, (OMAB.MX) the airport operator, also attributed the crash to bad weather, citing preliminary reports. 
   
   Aeromexico said in a statement: “We deeply regret this accident. The families of all those affected are in our thoughts and in our hearts.” 
   
   LIGHT INJURIES 
   
   Alejandro Cardoza, a spokesman for the state’s civil protection agency, said in an interview that around 85 people had suffered mostly light injuries and that the fire had been put out. 
   
   The civil protection agency said 37 people were hospitalized, while the state health department said two passengers were in a critical condition. 
   
   “Many managed to leave the plane on foot,” Cardoza said. 
   
   The head of Mexico’s civil aviation agency, Luis Gerardo Fonseca, said it could take months to know the cause of the crash. He told Televisa the plane’s voice and data recorders would be recovered once rescue efforts were completed. 
   
   Slideshow (18 Images) 
   
   The United States will send two people to assist the Mexican investigative team, a U.S aviation official said. 
   
   Flight number 2431 was an Embraer 190 bound for Mexico City when it crashed, Aeromexico said on Twitter. A spokesman for the Mexican airline declined to disclose the passenger list or the nationalities of those on board. 
   
   Among the passengers was Chicago-born priest Esequiel Sanchez of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, according to a statement by the Archdiocese of Chicago. 
   
   A U.S. embassy spokesman said he did not currently have confirmation of whether any American citizens were involved in the incident. 
   
   Aeromexico has not had any fatal crashes in the past 10 years. 
   
   A Mexican pilots association said last year there were 66 accidents and 173 incidents in Mexican aviation, saying the number was “worrying” and calling for more supervision of flying schools, more funds for maintenance and oversight of fleets, and shorter flying hours for pilots. 
   
   The Embraer 190 was involved in one fatal crash when a Henan Airlines flight overshot a Chinese runway in 2010 and another in Africa in 2013 when a LAM Airlines pilot deliberately crashed the plane during a hostage-taking incident, according to a summary by the Aviation Safety Network. 
   
   Embraer has delivered more than 1,400 E-Jets. 
   
   Aeromexico leased the 10-year-old aircraft involved in Tuesday’s incident from Republic Airlines in the United States in 2014, according to data on Planespotters.net. 
   
   Embraer said late on Tuesday it had sent a team of technicians to the scene of the accident and stood ready to support the investigation. The aircraft, the serial number of which was 190-173, was delivered in May 2008, the company said in a statement. ||||| Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Lorenzo Nunez described a "strong explosion" moments after take off 
   
   A passenger plane has crashed in the capital of Mexico's Durango state, just moments after take-off. 
   
   All 103 passengers and crew on board the Aeroméxico flight survived the crash but 97 of them are injured. 
   
   State Governor José Rosas Aispuro said the plane was hit by a gust of wind which caused a sudden descent. Its left wing then touched the ground and two engines broke off. 
   
   Most of the passengers were able to walk away before it caught fire. 
   
   Aeroméxico flight AM2431 was flying from Guadalupe Victoria International Airport in Durango to Mexico City when it crashed at around 16:00 local time (21:00 GMT). 
   
   Initial reports spoke of 97 passengers and four crew, but Governor Rosas said that two children were also on board - bringing the total to 103. 
   
   The plane's pilot is one of two who were seriously injured. He needed an operation on his spine but is reportedly in a stable condition. A young girl sustained burns. 
   
   Many other passengers had only "very light" injuries, officials said. 
   
   'We have to jump' 
   
   Ramin Parsa told the BBC that "shortly after the plane took off, I knew something was wrong. The plane began to shake," he recalled. 
   
   He said the plane hit the ground and "started bouncing, shaking and sliding" until it hit some trees and finally stopped when it fell into a ditch. 
   
   "All the lights went off and then there was smoke inside the cabin, people were panicking and screaming." 
   
   Mr Parsa said it was "a miracle of God that we survived". 
   
   Image copyright EPA Image caption The fire spread through the aircraft after the crash 
   
   Passenger Jacqueline Flores described the moment she and her daughter escaped the plane. 
   
   "I think we fell back on the runway because it was a hard surface, then we skidded on the ground until it stopped," the 47-year-old told the Agence France Press news agency. 
   
   "I undid my seatbelt and saw flames, and realised we had to jump. There was a hole right next to us where the plane had broken up. I told my girl, 'We have to jump over here', and we jumped," she added. 
   
   A local politician on board the flight, Rómulo Campuzano, said he had been "very lucky because I was able to get out by the main door". He said the door had been torn off and was lying next to the plane "acting as a ramp". 
   
   "I walked away from the plane, turning around to see if the other passengers were getting out, too. It started raining very hard and I think that helped put out the flames," he said. 
   
   Safe evacuation 
   
   Governor Rosas said the crew were able to deploy the evacuation slides shortly after the crash, allowing those still on board to leave the plane safely before the flames spread. 
   
   Image copyright AFP Image caption Most of the injured were released quickly and able to get home with a little help 
   
   The airline Aeroméxico has a good safety record, according to local media. Its last deadly accident was in 1981, when 32 people were killed when an Aeroméxico plane crashed on landing in northern Chihuahua state. 
   
   The airport operator, Grupo Aeroportuario Centro Norte, said early data suggested bad weather was the cause, and that the plane had taken off during a heavy hailstorm before being forced to attempt an emergency landing. 
   
   One passenger said the plane had been hit by lightning. 
   
   Image copyright AFP/KEVIN ALCANTAR DRONES DURANGO Image caption The plane crashed shortly after take-off 
   
   In a statement, Aeroméxico said they "deeply regret" the accident, while Brazilian plane company Embraer said it had sent a team to the crash site. ||||| (CNN) An Aeromexico flight carrying 103 people crashed just after taking off from an airport in northern Mexico, forcing passengers to escape via the emergency slides before the aircraft went up in flames. No one died. 
   
   Dozens were injured, Durango state officials said, and it appears that a strong wind brought down Flight 2431. 
   
   "The control tower noticed strong wind currents, and this could have caused the accident," Durango Gov. Jose Aispuro said Tuesday night in a news conference. 
   
   The plane was en route Tuesday from Durango to Mexico City when it rapidly descended after takeoff, airline and state officials said. 
   
   Rescue crews flock to the remains of the airplane just beyond the runway. 
   
   The left wing of the twin-engine jet initially touched the ground, causing the plane to lose both engines. The plane then skidded off the runway at General Guadalupe Victoria International Airport, stopping about 300 meters (1,000 feet) away, Aispuro said. 
   
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target: – That everyone aboard survived a plane crash in Mexico on Tuesday afternoon was news that emerged quickly; what's taking shape now is just how the 103 people managed to do so. The Aeroméxico flight went down shortly after taking off in Durango, bound for Mexico City. The BBC reports a gust of wind may have been a major contributing factor, causing the plane to plunge. The left wing scraped the ground and two engines tore off, with Reuters reporting the plane came to rest about 1,000 feet from the runway. The plane then caught fire, but most were able to exit it before that occurred. A young girl who was burned is one of two seriously injured people, with the pilot being the other. Reports on how many were injured in total range from "dozens" to 97. Passengers describe the crash to the AFP and CNN, which reports the crew was able to activate the evacuation slides. "The second impact was a lot stronger. This is when I jumped and hit my head against the ceiling. After the second impact, I saw flames in the cabin ahead of me." "When we were already aloft, up high, it felt like the plane was going to level out but just then it plunged to the ground. I think we fell back on the runway because it was a hard surface, then we skidded on the ground until it stopped. I undid my seatbelt and saw flames, and realized we had to jump. There was a hole right next to us where the plane had broken up. I told my girl, 'We have to jump over here', and we jumped."