Five people have been killed in a plane crash near the Mexican town of Santa Barbara, Mexican officials say.

Mexico’s Communications and Transport Ministry said the small private Cessna 206 crashed near Santa Barbara, about 250 kilometers south of the Mexican capital, Mexico City, in the northern state of Chihuahua on on Saturday, killing the pilot and four passengers on impact.

Local media reports said the plane crashed shortly after takeoff at 1510 (local time) from Frisco Airport, which was windy and covered with heavy fog at the time of the flight, contributing to the incident. Other reports said the plane crashed due to mechanical problems.

An official report is to be released after an investigation.

Mexico has a huge network of modern airports throughout the country and its air industry is the most advanced in Latin America. All cities with more than 500,000 inhabitants have an airport.

There are more than 70 domestic airline companies in Mexico. Aeromexico is the flag carrier airline of the country, with flights to more than 80 destinations both in Mexico and to Central America, South America, Cuba, Europe and Asia.

XLS/HJL/SS