A Canary Island-bound plane taking off in Madrid broke apart today as it attempted to lift off the runway:

The Spanair plane crashed and broke apart after failing to lift off from runway No 6 at the Barajas airport at 2.23pm local time en route for Las Palmas airport on Gran Canaria.

Reuters news agency quoted sources in the emergency services who said that all but 25 of the 172 people aboard - 166 passengers and six crew - had been killed. That was far ahead of the official death toll of around 45.

Initial reports claim that the aircraft’s left engine caught on fire before the plane careened off the runway, breaking apart in a grassy patch. It is being called the worst Spanish airplane disaster in over two decades. Spanish officials are still looking into the official cause of the crash, as well as for any additional survivors.

150 feared dead in Madrid plane disaster [Times]