DATE=04/15/2001

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

NUMBER=2-288723

TITLE=SOUTH KOREA/PLANE CRASH UPDATE (S)

BYLINE=AMY BICKERS

DATELINE=TOKYO

CONTENT=

///EDS: UPDATES CR 2-288716 WITH SURVIVORS AND NEW THROUGHOUT///

VOICED AT:

INTRO: A Chinese Boeing 767 jet crashed near the South Korean city of Pusan with 166 people on board. As V-O-A's Amy Bickers reports from our Northeast Asia Bureau, South Korean officials say at least least 49 people survived the crash.

TEXT: Rescue workers at a mountainside near the Pusan airport are sifting through the wreckage of Air China Flight Number CA-129 trying to find survivors. The plane crashed in rain and fog Monday on approach to Kimhae Airport. Most of those on board the Boeing 767 are presumed dead.

Survivors of the crash are being treated at several hospitals near the South Korean port city. Some were said to be in critical condition when they arrived for medical treatment. Most of those on board were South Korean. There were also Chinese nationals on the flight.

South Korean officials say that thick smoke and poor weather at the crash site are hampering rescue efforts. They also say that one of the plane's black box fight recorders has been located. (SIGNED)

NEB/AB/MAR/FC