A Cypriot airliner carrying 121 people crashed north of Athens on Sunday after the pilot and a passenger reported cabin pressure problems moments before the plane was due to land, Reuters reported. "The pilot has turned blue," a passenger said in a mobile text message to his cousin, Greek television reported. "Cousin farewell, we're freezing," it said. Greek TV station Alpha reported that the pilot had told air traffic controllers the plane was experiencing air conditioning problems. Moments later, communications with the plane were cut. Greek police and firefighters at the crash site said there were no immediate signs of survivors. Plane wreckage was scattered widely about the mountainous, uninhabited area, about 40 km (25 miles) north of Athens. "We have yet to locate any survivors. There is a small fire still burning, but it will be dealt with very quickly," a firefighter at the scene told Reuters. Two Greek F-16 fighter jets were scrambled after the Helios Airways jet, en route from Larnaca in Cyprus to Prague via Athens, lost contact with the control tower at Athens international airport. One of the F-16 pilots reported that he could not see the captain in the cockpit and his co-pilot appeared to be slumped in his seat, a Defence Ministry official told Reuters. Greek police said there were no signs the plane had been hijacked. --mor 1430 Local Time 1130 GMT
