AP 11/12 Investigators and rescue services at the scene of a plane crash at the airport in Valletta, Malta Reuters 12/12 Investigators and rescue services at the scene of a plane crash at the airport in Valletta, Malta Reuters 1/12 The scene after a plane crashes in Malta Sky News 2/12 Flames and smoke from the scene of a plane crash in Malta Sky News 3/12 video grab taken with permission from the Twitter feed of Ed De Gaetano/@eddydeg of a plane which crashed on take-off from Malta International Airport, killing all five people on board Ed De Gaetano/@eddydeg/Twitter/PA Wire 4/12 Rescue services at the scene of a light aircraft crash at the airport in Valletta, Malta Reuters 5/12 Members of Malta's Armed Forces check the runway after a small passenger aircraft crashed on takeoff at Malta's international airport Getty 6/12 Officers work in the area where a light plane crashed after takeoff from Malta airport AP 7/12 Firefighters work in the area where a light plane crashed after takeoff from Malta airport AP 8/12 Forensics work on the site of a small plane crash at Malta International Airport Getty 9/12 Monitors report departures delays as a light plane crashed after takeoff from Malta airport AP 10/12 Planes are parked at Malta airport, in Valletta. The French Customs department quashed earlier reports that the victims were French customs officials, tweet that none were aboard the downed plane. The government added that the French surveillance operation has been active for about five months, tasked with tracing illicit trafficking routes “of all sorts, including human and drug trafficking.”

The Metroliner was registered in the US and leased to a Luxembourg company, CAE Aviation group. It was bound for Misrta in Libya

The crash happened at about 0530 GMT as the plane was heading for Misrata in Libya, airport officials told Reuters. The airport was closed for four hours while debris was cleared, causing dozens of flights to be delayed and cancelled and officials warned it would take “some time” for the schedule to return to normal.
A twin-prop Fairchild Metroliner Mark III light aircraft crashes shortly after takeoff from Malta International Airport, killing all five French nationals on board. Malta officials say that the aircraft was part of a French customs surveillance operation tracing routes of illicit trafficking, of humans and drugs on Libyan coasts, and that the flight was heading for the Libyan city of Misrata.